Revolution
by NinjaninaIII
Summary: Kaoru's opinions for his sempai change drastically, and Kyoya finds what he's looking for after a storeroom encounter. KyoyaxKaoru
1. Store room encounter

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ouran high school host club.

**Chapter One: Store room encounter**

"Stupid Hikaru," grumbled the redhead twin. Just after club had finished, Hikaru had mumbled something about helping Haruhi before he had ran off to catch up with her and Tamaki who had left as soon as the club had ended.

Standing in front of one of the club's many storerooms by himself, both arms full of the Shakespearean themed costumes the members had worn that day, Kaoru cursed his stupid brother and his stupid crush. Of course, the low-blood pressure shadow king had disappeared somewhere as soon as the customers left and both Hunny and Mori- sempai's had their respective clubs to attend, leaving him by himself to tidy up the costumes that had been left strewn all over the dressing room. Yes, Ouran did have an army of hired cleaners who made the place spotless when all of the students left, but like hell was he going to let them touch his beautiful handmade designs.

He tried pushing open the doors. "Locked. Of course it is." He sighed angrily, carefully putting down the clothes before he slid open the secret panel next to the door. Ouran High's doors all looked as if they were typical western, key locked doors, but in their fourth year of elementary school, the devilish twins had found that they also had an electronic system which could override the manual locks. He entered the twelve digit combination code quickly from memory and the door clicked open.

"At least Hikaru's good for something… well… if you consider hacking good, that is." He opened the door with his bum and picked up the deposited clothes. Studying the rows of boxes and rails, filled with the vast amount of costumes that had accumulated since the club first started, he looked for the other S's. "Paradise island… Rumpelstiltskin… Sherlock… aha." Even in the foul mood he was in, seeing all of his best designs lined up in the same room made him feel like humming. He didn't know what song it was, but it was probably one of Hikaru's- it was upbeat and pop-y.

"Urghhh…" The zombie-like sound had come from somewhere behind him, and Kaoru turned around, wide eyed. He was sure he had locked the door behind him… It must've been his imagination.

"Who's there," a familiar voice said, more a command than a question.

"Uhhh… me?" Kaoru answered. A beat before he realised how stupid this reply was, the voice talked again.

"Kaoru, huh." The mystery voice appeared from amongst the seemingly endless boxes in the bedraggled form of the dark overlord that is Kyoya Ootori. His raven black hair was slightly ruffled and his shirt lightly crumpled. His eyes were bloodshot, as if he hadn't slept for days, which he may not have, since no-one could ever tell what lay behind the ever present silver-rimmed glasses that were now tucked into his shirt pocket.

"Kyoya-sempai?" The stunned redhead couldn't believe his eyes. The usually prim dark lord looked as if… as if he'd just had a nap… on a bed of expensive clothes… "Oi, you! What've you been doing in my wardrobe?!" Then there was silence. Those few seconds seemed to last for an age, as neither boy could believe the younger's outburst… or who the outburst was directed at. Recovering first, the taller boy pinched the bridge of his nose and put on his glasses. Once on, a glint of light flashed across the lenses, sending a shiver down Kaoru's spine, making his body unconsciously took a step back.

Slowly and deliberately, Kyoya leant forward, propping his arm up against the wall behind the smaller boy. "Oh, Hitachiin-san, how rude of me for seeking out the only quiet place in the school and taking a light rest before I must face my father and present to him a business proposal that may very well revolutionise the Ootori company." There was a moment's silence, but he didn't seem finished yet.

Gradually getting slower and emphasising his words in a voice that could freeze over hell, he continued. "Do _excuse_ me for invading your '_wardrobe_' and _locking_ the door in order to get some _privacy_ and to attempt escape from the migraine… that seems to be splitting… open… my… he-" Kyoya got mid-sentence before he suddenly collapsed, landing face first on Kaoru, pushing him down. "…Tired," was all he could manage before closing his eyes and falling asleep.

…

**A/N**: Hi :D Here starts the adventure of awesome. This is my first fanfiction, so although I've started editing the chapters, the grammar/ general storyline is pretty strange in places… but I hope you enjoy it anyway J


	2. Fluffy

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ouran high school host club.

**Chapter 2: Fluffy**

Kyoya was comfy. He vaguely wondered if he'd ever had such a soft pillow while ignoring the little voice at the back of his mind, telling him that he was missing something important. Very important. For some reason, he could hear the steady beat of a heart and felt the rise and fall of his pillow, but that didn't bother him- it actually settled him. He had always been raised without the closeness of a commoner family, so he'd never laid his head on someone other than a patient's chest before. Laid on someone's chest. Laid on some-

His eyes burst open to see that he was on the ground in a narrow space between two massive, heavy looking boxes. Behind him, he could feel something, someone. Tilting his head slightly, he saw that he had effectively pinned Kaoru to the wall with his back and was sort of slouching in the red heads lap. "Oh."

"'Oh?' Is that all you can manage? That hurt like hell, you know!"

"I seem to have slept well," the dark-haired boy said as he snuggled up against the redhead's chest.

"Oi, don't go changing the subject! And don't be making yourself comfy! Didn't you say you had to go to a meeting?" Kaoru suddenly felt his sempai tighten up and start shaking. He shot up, and turned around, his evil purple aura suddenly becoming visible.

"Why didn't you wake me up before!?" he almost shouted. Then, obviously calculating something in his mind; "No, no, I should thank you, Kaoru." He turned suavely on his heel and walked out of the space they had been occupying. He pulled up his sleeve and checked his watch. "Six thirty, huh?" He sighed then, in a soft voice, as if talking to himself but obviously wanting to be overheard, "Even if we drive over the limit, I won't have enough time to go home and…" he paused before emphasising: "Get _changed_ before the meeting…" He turned around once again, the light shining menacingly off of his glasses.

Kaoru wasn't a fool like his brother. He could tell what the Dark Lord wanted him to do. He was reluctant. He was tired. He wanted to go home. But he couldn't deny that he liked a challenge… "Uhh… Sempai, I'll see what I can find for you to wear in this storeroom…" As soon as he said it, his head was full of dazzling combinations. "Maybe… oh yes! We still have this! And if we take off these, and put on this… yes, that'll do nicely. Great, now we just have to find you… aha! Amazing! Yes, very smart. Very handsome!" Kaoru smiled at his sempai, who now was dresses in a formal, lavish looking suit, and looking about five years older. "Done."

"Hmm... yes. This is perfect, Kaoru. Thank you." Kyoya said, admiring the work.

"Yeah, yeah, hurry up or you'll be late" The redhead said, blushing slightly. Most of the host club and its customers took the costumes for granted, so he wasn't very used to the praise. Of course there had been loads of 'Kyaa~ Tamaki-sempai, you look so handsome as [insert character here]!' or 'Aww Hunny-sempai, you're so cute in that [insert character here] costume!', but he doubted whether the majority of them even knew they were his own designs.

As he watched the older boy leave, he went over the afternoon in his head. When Kyoya had fainted on top of him, he didn't even think of pushing the older boy off of him… rather, Kaoru had felt a weird need to stroke the slightly ruffled raven black hair. And when he had woken up, Kyoya had… _snuggled_ against him, and it didn't feel half bad. The whole thing had changed his opinion of the Demon Lord. Kyoya had seemed really… human. And, god forbid, fluffy. _Kyoya? Fluffy?_ As he blushed at the thought, he realised that something must be wrong with his brain. Maybe it was all of the twincest acts, turning his brain to mush.

_I'm sure that something else was wrong…_ Suddenly, his eyes widened. "Glasses! How the hell did he know…"

…

**A/N:** Such a lame cliffhanger XD


	3. Flowers

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ouran high school host club.

**Chapter 3: Flowers**

Exhausted, Kyoya unceremoniously flopped onto his bed. The meeting had gone pretty much exactly as he had planned. It had just been a small thing, consisting of him, his father, younger older brother and a couple of CEOs from various business' associated with the Ootori company over a dinner at a hotel, but Kyoya couldn't help but feel a tiny bit restless before it, resulting in his fatigue and eventual collapse. It had worked out in his favour though... _Kaoru Hitachiin, huh..._ he thought as he lay there. Kyoya knew that tonight he wouldn't be able to get to sleep at all, and so he started on the Berlin accounts.

"Is anyone else a little bit... freaked out?"

The host club had assembled for a morning meeting, but the twins, Haruhi, Tamaki, Mori and Hunny huddled in a circle in the corner of the third music room as they stared at the Shadow King, who had come in early and was sitting on one of the couches, reading whatever (or about whoever) was written in his black folder.

"Milord... Is Kyoya-sempai... smiling? At seven? AM?" Although they were all shocked and thoroughly scared, Hikaru seemed to be having the hardest time believing what he saw, rubbing his eyes, pinching himself, and pinching his annoyed little brother.

"Stop it Hikuru, that's where my bruises are," the younger boy said, though he seemed to lack enthusiasm. Hikaru had pointed out the massive purple blots on the backs of his arms, legs and backside, which he had got when he had hit the floor catching the surprisingly heavy sempai, last night when they had bathed together, but for some reason he didn't want to tell his brother about what had happened in the little room and had lied about how he got them.

"But… but the low blood pressure demon lord shouldn't be so… smiley! And anyway, I was just checking that you weren't dreaming either," Hikaru whined, without so much as an apologetic tone.

"If I was dreaming, then I wouldn't dream about _you_ pinching _me_, would I?" Kaoru sighed.

"Well I wouldn't even dream about the Shadow King in the first place!"

"Neither would I, but I just thought that was too bleeding obvious to point out. Apparently though, some people aren't as clever as I thought!" he said, seeming to snap.

"Clever? Who had to help a certain little brother with his Physics homework the other day?"

"It's not my fault that Butsuri-sensei gives us impossible homework! And I had to help you with that easy English essay the other day!"

"That English essay was not easy! Who the hell knows why Shakespeare uses language and style in Othello?"

"I do, idiot!" Kaoru sung.

"At least I don't walk into a door hard enough to bruise myself, so blehh!" Hikaru retorted, sticking out his tongue.

"Okay, we get it! Kyoya-sempai is acting weird! Jeez, no need to fight over it" Haruhi intervened, punching each boy on the top of their head.

"My Daughter is right! Stop fighting, devilish twins! I don't see anything wrong with Mother!" Tamaki added, earning him a hit on the head from annoyed girl as well.

"You be quiet. It's not like sempai smiling is really a bad thing… Maybe this is how Kyoya sempai really is, and he just wants to show us his real self?" As she said it, all six of them had a collective mental image of a smiling Kyoya running and laughing slow motion style through a field of brightly coloured flowers, talking to little birds and stroking furry kittens.

"No way," they all shuddered in reply. The two blondes, were scarred by the image, tears springing in their eyes, Hikaru made vomiting gestures, Haruhi hung her head, annoyed that she was even able to imagine such a thing, and even the usually emotionless Mori looked vaguely disgusted. Only Kaoru seemed slightly less disturbed, but his thoughts of a 'fluffy Kyoya' the previous night had warned him that his brain wasn't functioning correctly at the moment anyway.

"Scratch that, then. Hm… does anyone know why he would be this happy?" Haruhi asked, trying to move on quickly. All of the members started thinking about anything that would make them happy, and said them, only to be rejected by the others.

"CAKE!" exclaimed a sparkling Hunny.

"He hates sweet things, sempai," they all reminded him

"Tuna?"

"Silly Haruhi, he's not a commoner," Tamaki laughed light-heartedly, earning himself another hit on the head.

"Piyo."

"Um… Mori-sempai, I don't think Kyoya-sempai likes chicks…" Hikaru answered. "Personally, I think he's thought up a new plan to take over the world."

"That seems… credible." Tamaki said with a nod. "Or maybe he's just happy to be alive?"

"Uhh… Milord, we went down the 'he's just happy' path and look where it got us. I mean, we're _all_ going to have nightmares tonight after the… _flowers._"

There was a moment of shuddered silence. "He said he had a meeting," Kaoru said to break it. For some reason, he felt as if he was letting slip a massive secret that only he should know. "…With his father."

Slack jawed, the host club king started pouting and whining. "Mother didn't tell me about this! Why would he tell you? And when?"

"Oh, we just had a little… conversation yesterday, after the club finished. He happened to… to be there, so we had a chat. About… things."

"A chat. About things. Well, you couldn't get any less vague than that, could you?" Hikaru said sarcastically. "Why would you even initiate conversation with the demon lord when you were by yourself after darkness fell? Don't you know that his fangs grow an inch longer and he starts sucking the blood out of innocent victims in those kinds of circumstances?"

"It wasn't after dark. And it was because of a certain _someone_ that I had to put away the costumes by myself, you know. Besides, he wouldn't do…" Kaoru paused. "…anything weird," he finished sheepishly.

"Kao-chan, why are you blushing?" Hunny asked immediately, brimming with childish curiosity.

"I'm not blushing!" he muttered, turning a darker shade of red. "And anyway-"

"What are you all doing over here?" The host club felt a chill as they looked up to see the person in question standing above them, his happy smile reverting back into his menacing smirk. All members shot up and lined up, backs straight, chin-up, soldier style (excluding Mori, who stayed sitting on his chair), as Kyoya looked them all over.

"Oh, mother! We were just talking about you!" Tamaki said happily, his sense of fear obviously numbing his brain.

"Really. How… quaint. And what, pray may I ask, were you saying?"

"Oh, we were just having a chat. About things." Hikaru said, mentally reminding himself to kick Tamaki.

"That's really quite interesting. I thought I heard you say something about… flowers… or me taking over the world, or my blood sucking activities. However, it must have been my imagination. Now, if we don't have our meeting soon, we'll be late for class and we can't be having my impeccable grades tarnished can we?" His chilling voice glossed over them whilst he turned back to the couch he had been sitting on earlier. "Oh, and you really must learn how to whisper," he added, looking over his shoulder. "Not that it'll do much good" He chuckled to himself. He was Ootori Kyoya. He heard everything.

**A/N:** Yes, I called the teacher Butsuri because that's the Japanese for physics. Yes, I'm that bad at naming people. Also, Piyo is the name of Mori-sempai's lil' chick, and also the noise that Japanese chicks make. (Like tweet.) Adorable much :3


	4. Cosplay

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ouran high school host club.

**Chapter 4: Cosplay **

It was exactly a week after Kyoya's first meeting with his father, and tonight he was to meet once again and discuss business. Tonight, he was finally going to be a step closer to taking over the Ootori Company. Tonight was most definitely the night he had to be perfect. But he was exhausted. He very rarely had a good night's sleep, but in the recent weeks he had barely been getting more than an hour's rest per night, choosing instead to up his reputation by calculating various accounts and do any extra work.

Even so, he was excited. He had even gone to the host club's morning meeting without once giving a death glare to a certain idiot leader or fiery twin. School had now finished for the day and the club had brought in the expected profits. No expensive tableware had been treated carelessly and smashed, no devious plans had been laid by the twins, and none of Haruhi's suitors had caused a commotion. The sounds of the scores of fangirls had not, for once, caused him to frown.

This week's theme was Halloween, and Kaoru had managed to make the costumes look simply amazing. This year's theme was cosplay, much to the joy of the anime fangirls. Obviously, roles had been designated by the Cosplay queen and otaku, Renge.

"Ohohoho! The delightfully demonic Kyoya-sama with his dark charms, and the mature but fresh faced Haruhi-kun! They will look perfect for the roles of Ciel and Sebas-chan!" She had declared whilst appearing on her high-powered motor platform a month before in the planning session. "The cheeky Oz and his loyal servant Gil fits perfectly with the relationship between Hunny and Mori sempai's."

"Hey, Kaoru, let's be Naruto! You can be my shadow clone! Renge! We're going to be Naruto!" Hikaru had said.

"Ehh… but Hikaru… I don't want to be your clone…" Kaoru replied, sounding down heartened.

"Well I'm the older twin, so you're the clone of me!" He had replied energetically.

"That's not the point…" Kaoru said, but his complaint went unheard, as his twin was already practising his jutsu.

"How come Kyoya gets to be with Haruhi? I wanna cosplay with my daughter! We can be Usui and Misaki from Maid-sama~" Tamaki had whined.

"What a pervert. Stop sexually harassing me." Haruhi said, turning the king to a stone statue in his emo-corner.

"Tama-chan, why don't you be a hero character like Ed from Fullmetal alchemist?" was Hunny sempai's suggestion.

"H-h-hero? Ahhhh! The moving story of two brothers, yearning for their mother's love, such a tragic story! Then it's decided! I shall be the heart-wrenching hero, searching for a way to cure his brother's metal body!" He recovered instantly, eyes glinting with tears and stars as he struck a defiant pose, fist raised high.

"I thought that Ed had a height problem…" Kaoru uttered.

"Pffft, Milord can pull it off can't you! You certainly seemed to enjoy cosplaying as little Haruhi during the physical exams!" Hikaru laughed, causing the blond in question to turn beet red.

"That was your fault you devilish twins! You said it would work! Mother! Tell the children to stop bullying their Daddy!"

"Hmm? Well I'm sorry Daddy, but I agree with the children in this case. That _was_ a foolish plan, and you did seem to enjoy it rather too much." Kyoya said, smiling a supposedly innocent smile.

"Yaayy! Daddy and Mummy are having an argument! Ne, Kaoru, Haruhi, if they get a divorce, who will you go with?" Hikura said with glee.

"That isn't very funny Hikaru… You shouldn't be making fun of those kinds of things." Haruhi replied, making Hikaru wilt, pout and look at his brother for support.

"I wanna go with Mother~ Kyoya-sempai seems more likely to be able to cook… I don't wanna starve~" Kaoru said, pulling on Hikaru's sleeve and trying to act like a little child, not looking up for fear that the rest of the club would see his pink tinged face.

"Ehh? You'd go with the shadow lord? But Milord seems like the kind of parent who would let us children play games instead of doing homework, and give us lots of money to go and buy ice cream. Besides, we're all rich, we have servants to do the cooking." Hikaru said, genuinely confused, and not catching on to his brother's act.

"Damn rich bastards, you shouldn't choose which parent you'd prefer because of superficial things." Came Haruhi's stern reprimanding.

"Yes! My cute daughter is right! And anyway, mother and father wouldn't do something as sad as getting a divorce- would we?" Tamaki said glittering.

"Hmmm… It would depend on how much it would ruin my reputation." Was all Kyoya had said, before he returned the conversation back towards the original subject of the meeting, and leaving Tamaki crying in the corner again with Hikaru laughing at him.

"Umm… Renge-chan? Who is Ciel and Sebas-chan?" Haruhi had asked timidly, knowing full well that she was in for an otaku rant. What she got as a reply seemed just as incomprehensible for her as it was for the rest of the host club, as Renge's talking speed quickened in her excitement, and all of her words seemed to merge together.

"Well, basically, what happen is… , Phantomhive,theorphanedtwelve-year-oldheadofanEnglishnoble family ….Asaresult,hemadeadealwithademon….. inexchangeforhissoul…."

"…Umm… all I got was butler… and demon… and something about souls?" Haruhi said, her eyes spinning.

"I think that what Renge-san is implying that you, Haruhi, are to be my master, and I your 'demon' butler. Meaning that _I_ would have to serve _you_- Is that correct?" Kyoya had said, fixing an evil glare on the self-proclaimed manager.

"Yes, but Kyoya-sama, think of the profits you would make! Fangirls absolutely adore the relationship between the cool and handsome Sebastian and the cute but stern Ciel! You could even make a photoshoot album… which, I assure you, would make quite a lot of money…"

And so now, here they were. Hunny played a very cute Oz Bezarius, with Mori as Gil Nightray from Pandora hearts, whilst Tamaki was Edward Elric, which he was adamant on being, despite the height problem. The twins were Naruto Uzumaki and his shadow clone and the strange combination of Haruhi and Kyoya played Ciel Phantomhive and Sebastian Michaelis, which was a rather daunting task for the girl, as she had to order the shadow lord to do tasks as to the fangirls' requests. Yet even calling the commoner "My Lord" did not faze him as much as it should have. He had given his most charming smile and black roses had bloomed around him, causing around a third of the crowd to faint, with the rest erupting in a volcano of "kyaa's" and nose-bleeds. _The profits…_ he repeated over and over in his head.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** Sorry, I kept getting distracted by the idea of them cosplaying, that all story ideas sort of disappeared… and then the club member started on this conversation… but meh, this'll have to do- HOWEVER! I drew them dressed up, and Tamaki/Ed's dub voice actor signed it ^^ it's on deviant art- i'll put the link on my profile X3 Also, the whole concept of time in this story is a bit strange… it's been a year since the Halloween episode, but they haven't aged at all… yeah, so you'll have to suspend your disbelief


	5. Deja vu

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ouran high school host club.

**Chapter 5: déjà vu **

It seemed Kyoya could do nothing wrong. He felt like he was perfect in every way. And he looked good doing it too. In fact, the whole club looked good, as once again, the costume design was perfect. However, the constant smiling was making him extremely sleepy, which, unfortunately, not even thoughts of profits could solve. Looking at his watch, he decided that it was time for the Host Club to close for the day. After 10 minutes of shooing away still-rabid fangirls (and a fanboy in the form of Kasanoda), and changing out of his wig and costume, Kyoya made way to his not-quite-so-secret-secret resting place.

After ten minutes of resting in the silent, pitch black room, he heard footsteps nearing the door. Soon after, sunlight filtered through, and he saw a silhouette with its arms raised defensive-style searching around the room for something. Then, obviously satisfied, it slumped its shoulders and picked up a pile of what looked like clothes from the floor near the door. Said silhouette then sighed and proceeded to search the rails. Kyoya smiled, finding his effect on people extremely amusing.

"Looking for me perhaps?" Kyoya purred, propping himself up against the wall with his elbow, other hand on hip. His smile grew when he saw the boy in front of him jump.

"…Bastard. You. Utter… Bastard. You scared the hell out of me."

"Yes, well. It was amusing to see you so conscious of me."

"I wasn't being conscious of you. I was looking for… ghosts." Kaoru said, turning to face his sempai.

"Ghosts. I see."

"Yeah. What with it being Halloween season and all."

"Yes. I certainly do see… Is that the reason why you were not performing to the highest of your ability at the club today? You certainly weren't smiling at the customers. I'd say you made a loss of… let's say… ¥100,000? Luckily, my performance with Haruhi made up for it…"

"Yeah, well I wasn't in the best of moods either. Now you've had your fun, would you mind stopping grinning like a flipping Cheshire cat?"

"'Not in the best of moods?'" Kyoya repeated, choosing to ignore the rest. "Well then, we can't be having that. How would you like to have a little chat… about things?" He watched as the smaller boy flinched. "Oh, but don't worry, my fangs are safely in place, and I won't start sucking the blood out of you for at least another…" He pretended to check his watch "Oh, another half hour?" His grin widened slightly at his own joke.

Kaoru made a growling noise before turning back around and continuing to put away the costumes. He thought he heard the door lock before he felt a light tug on the back of his collar.

"What?" He asked.

"Lie down." Kyoya demanded lightly.

"What? What do you think I am? A dog?"

"Yes. Lie."

"What if I say no?"

"Well then, I'll push you down, although it would rather hurt your bruises. You have ten seconds."

"What bruises? Oi, don't push- OW." Kyoya's 'ten seconds' had turned out to be one, and Kaoru was now rubbing the backs of his legs as he sat leaning against the wall. Soon after, Kyoya slid down and sat next to him, whilst taking off his glasses. Then he laid his head on the younger boy's shoulder.

"Hey! What are you doing?" Kaoru demanded, his face turning as red as his hair as he turned slightly and found his lips centimetres away from the older boy's. _Up close, he really is handsome _he thought as he stared at the Shadom Lord who had apparently closed his eyes.

"I'm tired. You make a nice pillow. Now tell me about what's troubling you."

"It's nothing" Kaoru said.

"Oh, do spare me that. Who do you take me for? Now talk before I make you."

Sensing the evil aura spilling out of the Shadow lord, Kaoru decided that he had no other choice. "Hikaru. It's Hikaru that's bothering me." He started. "I know that at Pension Misuzu I said that he was an idiot, but it's like he's on a whole new level of idiocy now. Jeez you'd think that after 17 years of being together constantly he'd know when I'm not happy. I certainly know when he isn't- when he isn't around his precious Haruhi. Yet he still hasn't confessed. I doubt he even knows that he's in love! He reads freakin' shojo manga. You'd think he know when people are in love!" He sighed.

"But that's not all, is it?"

"…No" Kaoru whispered. "To actually call me his 'clone'… "

"…"

"So. That's why I've retaliated. You should know very well that it isn't the loud Hitachiin fights that should be worried about, being the omniscient Demon Lord and all."

"No, I do believe that silence from a Hitachiin twin is quite unusual."

"Yup. So I'm on a strike." Kaoru said, sounding slightly less meek.

"A strike." Kyoya repeated. He opened his eyes and glared at the younger boy, who tried (and failed) to smile his usual cheeky smile. "You do know how much that'll affect my profits?"

"Umm… Well…"

"And you do know that our dear manager will come up with a 'tragic' story about how Hikaru is having an affair, and you're lusting for attention by sulking?"

"Geh. I can see the doujinshi already."

"Hmm... yes, actually, now that I think about it, I could make a lot of money from that…" Kyoya said with an evil hint in his voice.

"Kyoya-sama~ You wouldn't do that, would you?" Kaoru said, feigning bambi eyes.

"How adorable." Kyoya said, sounding very neutral out loud, unlike inside his head. Then he slid his head from Kaoru's shoulder into the boy's lap.

"Kyoya-sempai? What are you doing?" He yelped, turning bright red.

"This is your punishment for today's losses, for your strike, and for underestimating my evilness." Kyoya replied, closing his eyes again. "Plus, your shoulder was quite uncomfortable" _In more ways than one… _he added in his head.

"I've suddenly had a sense of déjà vu… Is _this_ going to become a regular thing for us?"

"_This_?"

"Umm… being alone inside a dark, apparently locked room together, in this position?"

"Well, I like it, so yes. Now I have another meeting tonight. Wake me up at 6."

"So I'm your dog, pillow _and_ alarm clock now?"

"Yes." The raven haired boy replied simply.

* * *

><p><strong>AN**: Well that took me a whole day to write- jeez I'm a serial procrastinator. But crap's gonna go down next chapter! XD Well… if I can be bothered to write it anyway… :3 Please review and tell me if you think I should speed up/ slow down, add more/ take away fluff... or anything else that'll make you happier :D


	6. Move, breathe, think

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ouran high school host club.

**Chapter 6: Move, breathe, think**

Kyoya was trying very hard to sleep. But he couldn't. Sure, he was probably restless for the meeting, but mainly because he couldn't forget what just happened. When he had pushed Kaoru down, he had surprised himself, presumably along with Kaoru. It was as if his body had acted before he could think it through. Then it had happened again when he placed his head on the smaller boy's shoulder. And again when he had almost, but not quite closed his eyes… He had tried quite hard to remain passive when Kaoru had turned around. He had been centimetre away from his face. Namely, his lips. It had been uncomfortable, and not in a bad way… But he couldn't have lasted any longer. Why he chose to switch to Kaoru's lap, once again, he didn't know; his body had acted first. Not that it made any difference… because now he was in a completely different ball park altogether. He tried to remain as relaxed and as still as possible… but it was just so warm and comfy…

…

Kaoru was trying very hard not to move. Or think. Or breathe. Or move. Or think. Or breathe. When he had moved moments ago, he had felt Kyoya snuggle up to him. Then he had realised that he had used the words "snuggle" and "Kyoya" in the same sentence. And it frightened him that he didn't find it disgusting, or weird, or unnatural, or bad. Then he had shaken his head and breathed in and out deeply in order to get rid of these thoughts and to calm himself down, but doing so had caused Kyoya's hair to become slightly ruffled. And just like the first time this had happened, Kaoru felt the need to stroke the hair back in place. And doing so had reminded him of kittens and fluffy chicks. So he tried not to move. Or think. Or breathe. Or think.

…

Kyoya suddenly found himself wondering what type of person he was- could he lie to himself? Could he tell himself that being like this wasn't comfortable?

_No. I can't._ He decided to his dismay. So what will I do now?

…

Kaoru suddenly found himself wondering what type of person he was- could he lie to himself? Could he tell himself that being like this wasn't comfortable?

_No. I can't._ He decided to his dismay. So what will I do now?

…

"Still awake?" Kyoya asked, coming back from his thoughts when he noticed Kaoru become more relaxed.

"Oh, you were still awake?" Kaoru uttered, tensing up slightly.

"Yes… I had things on my mind."

"Hmmm" Kaoru said, not wanting to be rude by staying silent, but not feeling as if he should ask what the other boy was thinking about.

They sat in silence for a couple more minutes, before Kyoya asked what time it was.

"Five fifty three" Kaoru said after a moment.

"Hmm… That should do…" Kyoya said, finally sitting up, and away from the younger boy. He made his way to get up, but then paused halfway and gently placed his hand on top of the red hair in front of him. Kaoru stared at the floor, too surprised and embarrassed to look up. Kyoya's hand lingered for a moment, before he pushed himself up and turned towards the door.

It could've meant so much, but it could've meant so little- and Kaoru couldn't let him leave like that. His hand shot forward, and he tugged on the bottom of the older boy's blazer, causing Kyoya to turn slightly.

"What? Petting your dog are you?" Kaoru laughed unconvincingly. "Fluffing your pillow? Pressing the 'snooze' button?" He stood up, still clutching the blazer, still not looking up to assess the reaction he was getting, if any. _I want to ask myself what's wrong with me, but I think I already know…_

He felt a hand on his hand, which softly pulled his off of the blazer, and then up. His eyes followed the movement, and then he promptly turned bright red as Kyoya delicately kissed his hand, prince-and-maiden-style. He dropped his eyes back down to the floor, quickly glimpsing the slightly red tint of the other boy's cheeks as he turned away as well. Kaoru allowed his hand to fall, and he stepped back, suddenly all too conscious of their closeness.

But as he did, his foot snagged. It was the hem of one of the costumes next to him, and he tripped. For a moment, it seemed as if he would regain his balance. But it was not to be. Waving his arms wildly only created more momentum, and there was nothing near enough to grab hold of…

…

Kyoya's brain was a mess, trying to create a suitable excuse for his inexcusable behaviour. _I've been infected by the Host club… by that stupid host king… I've... not been…feeling well… I… have… fallen… for... _when suddenly from behind, he heard a loud bang. He whirled around to see Kaoru now lying on the floor.

"Kaoru? What's wrong?" He asked, before noticing that a quite large, dark pool was forming at the boy's head. Wide eyed, he knelt down and inspected it. "Blood." He breathed, and then checked where the wound was. _Do not give in to distress_. He told himself. _Be rational. Be calm. You are Ootori Kyoya. Now what do you need to do?_

He quickly pulled out his mobile and dialled one of many of his private ambulances whilst simultaneously tugging off his blazer. "Yes. I have a boy here, who has hit his head quite badly…" He ripped off a sleeve, and used the pastel blue material to gently blot some of the blood from the wound. "Unconscious. I am applying pressure to the wound, but I can't assess the injury clearly enough. I don't think it would be a good idea to move him by myself. Yes, I am at school in the third storeroom. Be as fast as you can."

He checked his watch continuously, kept the pressure on the wound, and tried to wake up the still unconscious boy. At 6:10, the ambulance arrived. Kyoya went with it. There were only two words going round in his head. _The blood. The blood. The blood…_

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** DUN DUN DUUUUUN. O.o didn't expect that- didya? Whatta plot twist! (Okay, if you did, then you're psychic. Or I'm really predictable.) I wrote this chapter whilst I was ill, so please please please tell me if you don't understand what I'm talking about! Pleaaaaaaase! I need all of the help I can get ^^'

I have mocks next week, so I may be a little late with the update, but please bear with me.


	7. Missed calls

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ouran high school host club.

**Chapter 7: Missed calls**

"Kyaaa! You know that room in ward five-"Two nurses sat behind their desk in the expansive white corridor.

"Eh? Which one?"

"The one with the youngest Ootori-sama's friend in it. And guess what I saw!"

"What? What?"

"Standing outside were five r~eeeeeeally cute bishies!"

"What? Really? How old were they?"

"Well there were two tall, fit guys who looked like uni students, one red head high schooler, a middle school cutie and an adooooorable little elementary school student" The first nurse said dreamily.

"No way~ Oh, but they must be friends of Ootori-sama too"

"You're right~ They're wa~y too out of your league" She teased.

"Ehhh shut up~" Pouted the second.

"Ahem. Don't you ladies have a job to do?" A tall, handsome man in his thirties said from behind them.

"Yes Sugimoto-san" They both said in harmony, looking at each other accusatively.

…

Standing in the long, white and brightly lit corridor were the host club members. They had been notified soon after half six, and had all rushed to the hospital to find that they had, to their bewilderment, wait outside the door, as per Kyoya's orders. They crowded around the door, all waiting for the doctor they had been advised to see- the only one who was allowed to let them in.

"Hika-chan, Kao-chan is going to be fine." Hunny said knowingly and reassuringly.

"But... If I hadn't have left Kaoru by himself, then this wouldn't have happened! My little brother wouldn't be lying in a hospital bed, dying... What am I to do? I feel so horrible. The guilt I feel... It's almost overwhelming…" There was silence for a while, until Mori cleared his throat, bringing all of their attention to him. When Mori spoke, you listened.

"Hikaru. You sound incredibly selfish. As if you're only worried about yourself, not about your brother. Right now, you should be thinking about what you can do for him, not about what you could have done before. Never regret what's happened. If it's good, it's wonderful. If it's bad, it's experience."

The group stood staring at him in awe for a few minutes, whilst he stood stock still, keeping his eyes focused on Hikaru's. . Eventually he shifted his eyes down and slightly to the side.

"Takashi, that was too harsh on Hika-chan." Hunny pouted.

"Hmm…" Mori faded back to the back of the group, still looking concerned yet defiant.

Soon after, they heard footsteps coming towards them. "Ahh you must be the 'cute bishies' that my nurses were talking about... My name is Dr. Sugimoto. I am Kyoya samas personal doctor."

The group turned away from Mori, and looked at the new arrival- recognition showing on some of their faces.

"Oi you. Why won't you let me in to see my brother?" Hikaru exclaimed, pushing his way towards the tall man.

"Now now" The doctor said, trying to calm the redhead by raising his hands up slightly, as if surrendering.

"Well? Why?" Hikaru demanded.

"Because Kyoya-sama gave me direct instructions to 'not open this door until now.'" The doctor replied matter-of-factly.

"Now? Why _now_?"

"Ahh. That's confidential information I'm afraid." He smiled thinly, as if talking to an irritatingly curious toddler. "You may go in now, however please refrain from any further disturbing actions, and remember to keep your voice down low. This _is_ a hospital you know."

Eying up the doctor, Hikaru sheepishly knocked on the door, before reluctantly opening it. He entered the room slowly, eyes now trailing on the ground.

It was only when he heard the intake of breath from around him did his head shoot up, expecting the worst. Collectively their mouths dropped. In front of them was not a pale, lifeless looking boy hooked up to scary and complicated machines, but a shojo-manga-esque scene.

Kaoru lay in the white hospital gowns, covered in the white sterilized sheets, chest rising and falling slowly, whilst Kyoya perched upon a soft chair immediately next to the bed, sleeping with one elbow propped up against the armrest, his head in his palm, with his other hand resting on Kaoru's.

"Well this is bad… But not quite in the way I had imagined it..." Murmured Hikaru to no one in particular.

"I have many things to tell you Hitachiin-san, however before I start, may I ask that we move somewhere else, as Kyoya-sama has only just fallen asleep... And, although at risk of sounding rude... I do not wish to face the wrath of his infamous morning state…" He chuckled nervously, just short of sounding genuinely concerned.

"Hoho is that what you thought of me Sugimoto-sensei?" Kyoya asked rhetorically from his seat, eyes still closed. "There is no need to go out of you way for me, although Kaoru has only just gone back to sleep."

Kyoya then opened his eyes and glared the group standing in the doorway. They promptly moved to the corner of the room, so as to avoid touching the dark purple aura that was being emitted. He took his glasses from the bedside table, and stood up. Then, checking his watch, he walked towards the door. "Excuse me I have a call to make." He said simply, heading out and leaving no time for anyone to reply.

"Good luck to the fool" The doctor said under his breath.

"What do you mean?" Tamaki asked quietly, speaking for the first time since hearing about the situation.

"Ah… Well… At the time of Kaoru-san's… _accident_… Kyoya-sama was supposed to be in a meeting with his father. However, he hasn't even left Kaoru-san's side, and apparently nobody knew where he was until the call for the ambulance was logged..."

"Nobody knew where he was? Does… Does that mean that Kyoya and Kaoru have 'secret place'?" Tamaki whined dramatically. "Ooo~ mother! Have you been cheating on me~?"

"What's with your perverted mind- idiot." Haruhi said, causing the blond prince to curl up in the opposite corner of the room. An eeire silence fell as each host thought of the implications.

"So… it was his fault?" Hikaru said into the quiet.

"No, I never said that." Dr. Sugimoto said, frowning. _Oh boy, this one's gonna be annoying. Ahh~ and I wanted to go out drinking tonight~_

"But you deliberately emphasised _'accident'_ – why was that? And not even the best secret police in the world can tell us where _Kyoya-sama_ was before said _'accident'_? You think I'm going to believe that bull?"

Hikaru started pacing, mulling over his thoughts, obviously not wanting an answer. Suddenly he stopped, and pulled the doctor into him by his collar. "DID YOU THINK I WAS GOING TO BELIEVE THIS CRAP?"He pulled back his arm, getting ready to punch, but a strong arm held his elbow.

"LET GO, MORI SEMPAI. LET ME BEAT THIS BASTARD TO A PULP." Hikaru said slowly and angrily.

"No" Was the simple yet stern reply he got.

Hikaru sighed, then after a moment let his arm drop, knowing that there was no point in arguing any further without earning him some injuries.

"I'd like it if you could keep your voice down in the hospital" The frustrated doctor said whilst straightening his white lab coat, earning a death glare from the irritated redhead.

"Ne ne, Sugi-sensei~" Hunny said, as cheerfully as usual and seemingly oblivious to the tension in the room.

"Yes Haninozoka-sama?" The doctor replied, visibly backing up a few steps, painfully aware of the wrath that the little blond monster inflicts when angry. A year ago, he had been the private dentist for the Haninozuka and Morinozuka families. It had been him who had had to tell them about the boy's cavity. He had only barely escaped with a medium sized bunny-shaped scar on his chest, and that was because he had been chucked into safety last minute by Mori. Otherwise, he'd be dead.

"Where's Kao-chan?" Hunny giggled, happy to finally get his revenge.

Almost complete silence fell as Hikaru, Haruhi, Dr. Sugimoto and Mori turned to face the now empty bed. Mouths agape, all they could manage was collective silence, broken only by the light laughter from the smallest host, and the occasional whimper from Tamaki, who was still sobbing by himself.

"What… When..?" Haruhi uttered.

"I'm so fired. I am so fired." Dr. Sugimoto sighed. "Fired. Fired. Why can't you Ouran kids be… be normal?"

He slumped in the chair that Kyoya had been sitting in before. He turned towards the door, just as Hikaru reached it. "I'd tell you not to run in the corridors… but what do I care? I need some alcohol."

…

Kyoya was by himself, just outside of the hospital, perched on the side of the ornamental fountain.

"He's very angry."

"…"

"You do know that don't you."

"Yes. Yes, I know, Fuyumi-neesan."

"Very angry."

"I know."

"How could you stand him up like that? You embarrassed him. You _embarrassed_ him, Kyoya-san."

"What could I do. That's how it is."

"Kyoya-san, you made Father angry. Surely you know that you will _never_ have a chance like that again? He will _never_ let you inherit the company now."

"…Don't you have a husband you should be irritating?" He snapped.

"Kyoya-san! Listen to m-" Kyoya ended the call. He didn't need her to tell him that he was a failure. He just needed to check his call log to be reminded. 13 missed calls from his driver, 7 from his sister, and a rare phone call from his father. He rubbed the heel of his palm on his forehead. _Today has been one big headache after another _He thought, sighing.

"Your sister?" Kaoru's voice came from nearby.

Kyoya smiled. _Well… Almost everything… _"Yes… And you managed to escape the pit of hell?" He teased.

About an hour ago, Kaoru had woken up in the bright white hospital room, to be told that he had fallen and hit his head. Had mild concussion. Nothing serious. Needed to stay for observation for a couple of days. Apparently, he had lost a bit of blood, but it was only because he had cut his head on something sharp on the way down, not because of the actual impact of the fall. But he couldn't take it all in. All he could think was: 'God, I really do not want to hear Hikaru's voice right now.' As it turned out, he had actually said it out loud, and so it came to be. Kyoya hatched up the 'escape plan' and now here they were, sat together in the twilight.

"…You…" Kaoru started, looking down.

"Hmm?"

"You said that you had a meeting today… You missed it?"

"When you fell… I knew that I couldn't leave you, even in the hands of the best doctors in our company."

"But you missed your meeting! Your one chance to beat your brothers... and you stayed with me?"

"Yes, well... I'd like to say that it was just me calculating what would gain me the biggest profits, but..."

"But?"

…

Hikaru burst out of the hospital doors after searching the whole building for his little brother. Suddenly, he caught sight of the famous Hitachiin bright red hair. He almost shouted out to his brother, but then noticed that he wasn't alone. Slowing down, he quietly made his way closer to the pair.

"But?" He heard his brother say.

"But, Kaoru Hitachiin… I do believe that I am quite infatuated with you."

* * *

><p><strong>AN :** *Creeper face* Tehe~

Btw, did you know that Fuyumi actually calls her brother Kyoya-san? Weird.

Once again, reviews are kindly appreciated! Much thanks to all my previous reviewers, who have inspired me to keep on going :3


	8. In the beginning

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ouran high school host club.

**Chapter 8: In the beginning…**

In the beginning, Kaoru had 'loved' Haruhi, as had everyone in the Host club. But love was a whole new concept to him. He loved his mum and his dad. He loved his brother. He loved the Host club. He loved Italian food. He loved Haruhi.

He, like many people, didn't know what the difference between these 'loves' were. But after spending the time they had in class, at the host club, and wherever else, watching everyone interact with her, he realised that his 'love' was not the same as Tamaki's or Hikaru's. He was not "in love" with her.

All of his life, he had thought that Hikaru and himself would always be the same, always by themselves in their little world. But seeing how Hikaru plainly did love Haruhi in the pure, romantic, and idiotic way that he did, made Kaoru notice things… how he could never _be_ Hikaru…

It had started with the "Which one is Hikaru game~" Of course, it was never the "Which one is Kaoru game" Or even "Which twin is which game" It was always about the older twin. Then Kaoru noticed the little things in his brother's speech… the things he assumed; "We want to play with that" or "We want to be with Haruhi" or "We think that it's Milord's fault!"

"We. We. We." Before, the twins had never had to communicate with words- they had always known what each other was thinking. Kaoru wondered when that had changed… _When did I stop needing Hikaru to say things for me? When did I start thinking about things independently?_

And so he had come to analyse everything that his brother said or did. He would notice that during lessons, Hikaru wouldn't look out of the window vacantly, but would stare at Haruhi's focused face and that during their "acts" Hikaru's eyes might wander to find Haruhi.

But Kaoru already knew this. Haruhi had started a revolution in their world, which made the little cracks in their world all too visible and he wondered how he could've ignored them before. And they made Kaoru annoyed at his brother.

_What world?_ Kaoru eventually thought. _Our bubble has popped. Our castle was blown to bits. And like hell am I going to stay here trying to rebuild the walls myself, when I know that Hikaru will never sit on the throne with me again._

It was about then that Kaoru also started to notice someone else… the boy with the bird-like face and the fluffy hair.

…

In Ouran, being gay was not as rare as may have been expected. Hence the fact that Tamaki and the rest of the other host members hadn't batted an eyelid when they had first assumed Haruhi was a boy looking to be served. No, it wasn't rare… But once you came out of the closet, you could never go back in. The mass media had its methods of hounding you down. Even the Ootori army was rendered powerless by fangirl gossip. Sure, you could give them death glares, threaten to burn their manga, or even put a whole newspaper company out of business permanently. But no one can destroy the whole of the internet, with its thousands of forums, fanclubs and other websites.

And Hikaru knew this.

…

The next day was a Saturday, so the host club members spent the day in Kaoru's hospital room. For an hour or two they had a meeting about upcoming club events, then they played card games for the next two, had lunch, made conversation for another couple of hours, but by 3 o'clock, they had lapsed into an almost awkward silence.

…

Hikaru also knew that "scandal" was one word that no Ootori family member would tolerate.

Hikaru also knew that Kyoya was vile, hateful… incapable of being anything other than unpleasant.

He… knew? Or he… assumed?

Well… Maybe he didn't _know_ that… But Kyoya _was_ evil… _right?_

And it definitely was a _fact_ that Kyoya wasn't good for his brother.

Right?

And Kaoru was _not_ in love with the demon lord.

Right?

But…

The members had been sitting in a ring, with Kaoru sitting up in his bed next to Hikaru, then Mori, Hunny, Haruhi, Tamaki and finally Kyoya, but Kyoya had been in and out of the room all day. When he was out, the rest of the members had seen him through the window outside, irritably instructing someone down his mobile. When he was in, he sat, furiously scribbling down words, numbers, nobody knew for sure exactly what in his little black book, occasionally letting out a frustrated grunt, tearing a page out, scrunching it up and chucking it into the paper bin beside him. He had barely spoken a word to them all day, and was oozing an atmosphere that plainly said "annoy me and die" which even Tamaki had taken to heart.

And when Kyoya was inside the room, Hikaru watched him like a hawk. He watched for any unusual behaviour, any little movements or any slight hints that something was different.

And Kaoru watched his brother stare at their raven haired sempai. _Something is obviously wrong._ He thought.

And whilst Hunny sat, swinging his legs and eating some cake and Haruhi did some homework; Tamaki pestering her, Mori watched them all.

He watched as Kyoya once again left the room, making Hikaru relax back in his chair. He watched as Kaoru turned to stare vacantly up at the ceiling. He watched as Kaoru almost unconsciously brought his hand up, and touched his lips.

...

"But?"

"But, Kaoru Hitachiin… I do believe that I am quite infatuated with you."

"… as in… lo-" Kaoru stuttered.

"Ana Behibak. Wo ie ni. Volim Te. Jeg elsker dig. Ik hou van jou. Tora dust midaram. Je t'aime. S'agapo. Ich leibe dich. Ani ohev otha. Njan ninne premikkinu. Main tenu pyar karda haan. Naan Unnai Khadalikkeren. Saya cintamu. Tangsinul sarang ha yo. Dustat daaram. Ya lyublyu tebya. きみを愛してる。"

"Wow, just like an Ootori… you're not a man of halves, huh? Was that… sixteen languages?"

"Eighteen actually" Kyoya smiled. "But they all mean the same thing…"

Kyoya's lips had been strangely sweet on Kaoru's. It was quick, but it was enough. Drawing back slightly, the older boy laid his forehead on Kaoru's. In the twilight, Kaoru was able to see an uncharacteristic slight pink tinge on Kyoya's cheeks.

"I love you." Kyoya smiled.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** Yess… it's a short, fluffy chapter, but it was either that, or no chapter at all P: Umm… I'm crap at languages, so if I got any of them wrong, please do tell me

^_^ As always, please review :D See you next time~


	9. Starry sky

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ouran high school host club.

**A/N: Umm if you're sensitive to swearing, I'd suggest you skim read this chapter XD**

**Chapter 9: Starry sky**

The raven haired boy slammed his phone shut.

"Shit."

He raised his arm high above his head, ready to pound the mobile into the floor, but hesitated.

"Shit. Shit. Shit."

He made to throw it, but his mind went blank the rage dissipating momentarily, and he lowered his hand.

"Shit."

He dialled the number again.

There were three monotonous beeps, and then silence.

"Shit."

He pressed his fingertips to his forehead.

He took his glasses off and closed his eyes, collapsing onto the park bench behind him.

He heard footsteps coming his way. They stopped a couple of meters in front of him.

"Who is it?" Kyoya said, not wanting to open his eyes.

"Me."

"Oh good. Just the person I didn't want to see." His eyes remained shut, trying to ignore the pest as much as he could.

"You."

"Me? I do have a name you know."

"…"

"Preferably with a '-sama' on the end, or for additional credit; 'great demon overlord' would be nice…"

"You."

"Or not then…" Kyoya sighed "Yes? What do you want?"

"You… What…"

"Great, you've achieved a third word. Willing to elaborate?"

"Do…"

"Do?"

"Do you… Do… You…" He sighed. "URGH. I CAN'T EVEN FUCKING SAY IT OUT LOUD."

"Hikaru_-san_" Kyoya's cold but calm voice cut the air, his eyes still shut. He laid his head against the back of the bench. "Say whatever you came to say, or go away."

Hikaru sighed. "Do you, I mean… do you… Kaoru…" He made an agitated noise.

All too quickly, Kyoya realised that Hikaru had evidently been eavesdropping on his confession.

It annoyed him; there was only one person in his life that he wanted to show that side of him.

_Better to get it over sooner than later_ he thought.

"I love Kaoru."

Hikaru inhaled deeply not quite from shock, but from something else. He held it in, let it go. "Wh-" He started, but his sempai cut in.

"Hikaru. Think about what you're about to say very carefully."

Kyoya finally opened his eyes. He stared up at the younger boy.

"I just… wanted…" Hikaru whispered.

"I know what you think of me, Hikaru Hitachiin, and to be honest, I don't care for you or about you in the slightest. And so out of my respect for Kaoru, I'll put this simply. Leave us alone, or I will _not_ hesitate to seriously hurt you."

Hikaru shivered. The truth in those words had been blatant, and they scared him. So he retreated. He disappeared as quickly as he had come in the evening darkness.

Kyoya sighed.

He had done a lot of sighing recently.

"Shit."

And swearing. Sighing and swearing pretty much summed up his life at this time.

He tried the phone once more.

He was greeted with the three beeps that indicated that he wasn't getting anywhere; with this problem, and in life.

He stared up at the cloudy, dark grey sky. He closed his eyes.

"I could really use a shooting star right about now…"

He waited.

And waited.

His head was completely devoid of the thoughts that had taken it up before.

His shattered hope now seemed to fill up his skull.

He opened his eyes.

Kyoya blinked in surprise. He was staring into a golden, star filled sky; filled with crimson, amber, bronze… he was literally star struck. And the moment seemed to last forever.

"Has anyone ever told you that your eyes are… amazing?" Kyoya uttered, gaining some of his lost composition.

Kaoru laughed. "I'm amazing all round, what else would you expect?"

"It's true though… It's like there're fairies in your eyes" Kyoya said, almost in wonderment.

"Ummm… I'm sorry; I don't seem to have the right person. I thought you were Kyoya the scary evil king, but apparently you're Mister Poetic." Kaoura chuckled "Which, by the way, is about twenty times scarier you know. You should use it more often. People would be permanently scared witless."

"Ah, but you see, I only let my nearest and dearest see Mister poetic. He's my best weapon." Kyoya smiled.

In the back of his mind, he noted the fact that it only took a moment of Kaoru's company to feel completely recovered.

Kaoru was laughing softly, still slightly bent down in front of him.

"Please, do join me in my luxury suite" Kyoya said, patting the bench.

"Don't mind if I do." Kaoru smiled.

He sat a small distance away from the taller boy, only to be gently pulled closer.

They sat in silence for a couple of minutes.

"Kaoru."

"Hmm?"

"What do you think you call the uncontrollable desire to fling oneself in the direction of another?" Kyoya asked, straight-faced.

"I think I've heard Renge call such a thing a 'glomp'." Kaoru replied, not quite so straight-faced.

"Hmm... a 'glomp' seems rather unsavoury."

"I see fangirls 'glomp' quite frequently… I think there is such a thing as 'death by glomp' you know." Kaoru laughed.

"Yes" Kyoya said, keeping his faux seriousness. "I think I heard about that this morning in the news…" He couldn't stand it any longer, and burst out laughing. He put his hands over his face.

"I think…" Kyoya's voiced was slightly muffled, but still audible.

"You think?"

"I think that… I would cry right now. If… If I wasn't me, I think I would be crying." Kyoya said, face still hidden.

Kaoru turned in shock at the words.

"This… I'm sure I don't have to tell you… what I'm about to say, please… Please don't tell anyone."

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** D: It's so short! And so late! And so ambiguous! OTL Please don't kill me TT^TT Next chapter, I swear it'll be good… if not, then you can… um… torture me? I don't know… I'M SO SORRY .


	10. The third year

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ouran high school host club.

**Chapter 10: The third year.**

"This… I'm sure I don't have to tell you… what I'm about to say, please… Please don't tell anyone."

Kaoru nodded. He sat up straight, not wanting to look relaxed when Kyoya was being so serious.

"I'm…" Kyoya dropped his hands and turned to face Kaoru. He noticed the tension that was slowly creeping between them, making the nice mood they had had before disappear.

"I'm… actually Superman." He breathed out.

"Umm… what?" Kaoru said, dumbfounded.

"It… was a joke… not really as funny as I had anticipated though…" Kyoya laughed shakily. "Good lord, am I bad at expressing myself…"

"Very true. You're either OTT or silent you know." Kaoru said, feigning his evil self.

"Oh…" Kyoya uttered.

"That was a joke as well…" Kaoru said. Kyoya laughed.

"Looks like between us we have a very bad sense of humour, huh?"

"Agreed." Kaoru chuckled.

Kyoya laughed again, this time slightly more sure of himself.

"Ready to start now?" the younger boy asked, his tone soft again.

Kyoya breathed in and out slowly.

"The first time… in the store room- remember?"

Kaoru nodded.

"Well-"

"Wait, wait, wait, I just remembered something!" Kaoru cut in. "That first time, you asked who was there, and I replied with 'me' and you instantly recognised me... but you weren't wearing your glasses- how the heck did you know who I was?"

Kyoya looked at Kaoru as if it was the easiest question in the world.

"Wait- I'll come back to that in a bit."

"Fine… continue…" Kaoru mumbled.

"Well. That was when I finally decided it had to be you."

"Ehmmm… Me? For what, exactly?"

"You, Kaoru, are going to make me rich, and more famous than my father."

"Oh… Well that was a little less romantic than I had expected."

Kyoya paused.

"Oh… sorry… that was a bad way of putting it." He coughed into his fist.

"In three years' time, I plan on travelling the world for three years. Half a year in Asia, half a year in Europe, then Africa, South America, North America, and finally Australia."

"Right…"

"And you're coming with me."

"Rig- Wait, what?"

"You're coming with me."

"Yes, I heard that, but why?"

"Because you'll be needing inspiration."

"For what?"

"For the clothes that you're going to design, which are going to take over the world."

"So… you're going to take over the world… through fashion."

"One step at a time, dear boy."

"Umm… Kyoya-sempai, are you sure it wasn't you who hit your head yesterday?"

Kyoya's face fell. "You don't like the idea?"

_He's like a puppy, with his extreme mood changes and pouty face…_ Kaoru thought. Then he internally face-palmed._ I just called the Demon Shadow King a puppy. Wow. _

"It's not that I don't like it… it's just that I'm extremely confused right now." Kaoru hastily replied.

"Hmmmm…"

"Kyoya-sempai…"

"Yes?"

"You can be surprisingly cute sometimes."

Kyoya's head turned quickly, and he stared at the younger boy. "What?"

"Ehmm… nothing… Carry on…"

Frowning, but not really wanting to explore his 'cute' side, he carried on.

"Well, it isn't as if I've wanted to go into fashion my whole life. The thing is, three years ago, I gave up on taking over the family business."

"You did what?" Kaoru shouted, wide eyed.

"Because 'why take it over, when I can surpass it, and create a legacy of my own' I thought at the time. So that's what I've been doing for the past three years. Building my plan on taking over the world."

"I have one little question" Kaoru interrupted, putting his hand up.

"Go on?" Kyoya said.

"Your little black book…"

Kyoya laughed evilly. "That is indeed the book that I have been using to write my plans to take over the world." He grinned. "I'll let you read it sometime. It's actually quite interesting."

Kaoru stared silently at the taller boy for a moment, and then burst into laughter.

"Are you kidding me? You legend! Only you could say that, and be taken seriously!"

Kyoya joined into the laughter. When they had both quietened down, Kyoya continued.

"So… Yes. Taking over the world. I decided that the best way to start would be, of course, to travel the world. But I couldn't just up and leave, so I decided that I would go as a 'gap year.'"

"But that's not in three years' time- only one." Kaoru said.

"I'm getting to that, just wait."

Kaoru sighed. "Fine, just hurry."

"Around the time I had decided on taking over the world, I met Tamaki. When he asked me to join the host club, I had originally thought that it would just be a good way to bury myself into the Suoh's good books… but then I met you."

"Me?"

"So… you asked me how I recognised you? Simple. Because I've been watching you for the last two years now."

"Because that's not creepy or stalker-ish in any way…" Kaoru muttered.

Kyoya's face fell again. "No… that's not what I mean…"

Kaoru smiled. "I know, just teasing."

"Hmm… well I had been watching your designing, how perfect the costumes were every time… and I finally came to the conclusion that if I have you, then I could succeed in my plans. But I was also watching you… this whole time, your elegance, your…" He coughed, suddenly really embarrassed. "But that's another story."

"…" Kaoru looked down, trying to hide his bright red cheeks with his equally bright hair.

"Okay… so… moving on… Once I decided that it was fashion that I wanted to do, I started calculating my plans. I didn't want to just drop you out of school when I leave… that's not fair. So my new plan; after I leave, I'm going to start a business… which will become big and successful."

"Not wishing for much then, eh?" Kaoru said, cooling off a bit.

"Shh. Listen. So for two years, while I wait for you to graduate, I'll start up the business, and make my name."

"And the third year?"

"Well that's…" Kyoya turned away slightly. "If… if you don't agree… then I left a year for me… to…"

"To…" Kaoru echoed, clueless.

"Well… To… umm… to… to mend my…"

"…"

Kyoya sighed. "Kaoru, I love you. But I'm new to love, as you might expect… and I can't calculate how much time it would take me to… get over you if you were to reject me."

Kaoru's face bloomed bright pink. The shock kept him from turning his head away.

"Uhh… I… uuhh… umm…" The smaller boy stuttered.

Kyoya had seemed to shock himself, and was sitting with his eyes clenched shut. He breathed in, then out.

"That's… That's what I was supposed to have told my father in the meeting on Friday night… But… but now he has blocked my phone calls to him… and he's completely avoided my for the last couple of days."

Now Kaoru was shocked for a different reason.

"The one thing he's said to me since I missed the meeting was… 'Kyoya. Like Icarus you have tried to elevate yourself too high, and now I can only watch as you crash and burn.' But… But it's okay. Because that just means I've gotten rid of my safety net… Now it's do or die. I will never be able to take over the Ootori Company… but I can still make my own legacy." Kyoya said. "I'm so sorry, Kaoru… I didn't want to put this pressure on you… but will you go with me?"

…

"Before I answer… can I tell you my story?" Kaoru asked after a minute of silence.

"Yes! I mean, please, go ahead." Kyoya said, slightly taken aback.

"Well… What's the best way of describing this…?" Kaoru closed his eyes and leant back against the park bench.

"In my mind… There's been a revolution…"

Kaoru told Kyoya his thoughts from the last week… the last two years, about his life with Hikaru.

"And so… we come to yesterday… When you kissed me…"

Kyoya didn't know what to expect. He hoped for good news, acceptance, but didn't want to calculate the odds that Kaoru would reject him…

"I have just one thing to say." Kaoru said, finally losing some of his shyness.

"Go on?" Kyoya said.

"…"

"I am NEVER going to be Uke. EVER you hear me?"

Kyoya's mouth let out the breath he had been holding for the last few minutes.

He laughed, pure and full of relief.

"I'd like to see you try." Was his reply.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** Tehe~ a nice, long chapter yes? We all good now?

p.s. What is up with all of this fluffy-ness? 0_0 I don't know where it's coming from. It's scaring me a little. Also, Kyoya's a tsundere? WTactualF. Wow, my mind… OOC much… Do you like it? Or should he go back? Or 50/50? HELP ME PLEASE.

p.p.s. Once again, I was ill whilst writing this, so if it doesn't make sense, please just tell me .

p.p.p.s. Happy birthday Lee Heteroclite/ LeeBane :D


	11. Anger

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ouran high school host club.

**Chapter 11: Anger**

"What?" Kaoru said defiantly.

"You? Seme?" Kyoya doubled over in laughter and then wiped away a tear from his eye.

Kaoru gave him silent evils. "Ha Ha. Very funny."

"Yes, Haha! Could you even imagine the great and glorious _me_ being Uke?" This started him off in a new wave of laughter, less innocent than before.

"Yes I could, Mr. Tsudere" Kaoru pouted, which made Kyoya fall silent.

"Tsundere? What are you talking about? I'm Tsun all the way to the core!"

"Nahh, Sempai, you have hidden talent as a cute Deredere" Kaoru said, now being his turn to smirk evilly.

"What would ever give you that impression?"

"I can't calculate how much time it would take me to… get over you if you were to reject me" Kaoru mimicked in a gooey voice.

"I didn't say it like that!" Kyoya denied frantically, turning a light shade of pink.

"Yes you did!"

"No I didn't!"

"Yes, you did."

"No, I didn't!"

"Yes. You. Did."

"No. I. Didn't."

"Yes, yo-"

They paused as they heard footsteps approaching.

Immediately Kyoya's face reverted back to its usual emotionless expression, and he put his glasses back on.

"Waaaaaaaaii~ TsunTsun~" Kaoru teased.

Kyoya's face turned red again as he pouted.

"Waaaaaaaaaii~ DereDere~" He teased again, but seeing Kyoya's stiffness, he decided to move further away from him_. I guess he doesn't want people to know yet…_ Kaoru thought, feeling quite dejected. _Why am I feeling so rejected? He's the one who just told me that his life plans revolve around me…_ He stood, ready to flee…

These thoughts were cut short as Kyoya's arm shot out and caught him.

"Please don't go away" Kyoya said, looking into his eyes.

_Oh god_, Kaoru thought, blushing once again. _He's so freaking adorable. _The power seeped from him as he flopped onto the bench.

"Why am I such a cliché maiden?" Kaoru muttered to himself.

"Hmmm?" Kyoya said, obviously tangled up in his own thoughts.

…

Kaoru stood up, ready to flee, but Kyoya's hand shot out to grab him.

_I don't want to be by myself anymore_ Kyoya thought. "Please don't go away" He said, looking into Kaoru's eyes. His heart almost skipped a beat as he once again stared into the golden, star filled sky. Awestruck again, he felt the power leak from his legs_. If he leaves then I won't be able to chase after him_ Kyoya thought desperately, pleading with his eyes.

Relief filled him when Kaoru flopped down next to him.

_I'm not alone anymore. I'm not alone anymore. _He repeated to himself.

Weak kneed, rosy faced and heat a-flutter, both boys sat on the bench in their companionable silence.

"Kyo-chan and Kao-chan are being lovey-dovey!" Hunny blurted, hardly able to keep himself from jumping up and down with excitement. Mori nodded behind him.

They looked up to see that the host club had gathered in front of them.

"Oh god, the flowers." Hikaru said.

Everyone turned to him.

"Oh god. The flowers..." Haruhi repeated, making a disgusted face, echoed by Mori and Tamaki.

"Umm… Sugimoto-sensei was looking for you…" Haruhi said, getting over her shock slightly.

Kyoya stood up and offered his hand to Kaoru, who took it.

They stood together, hand-in-hand, and made to walk back to the hospital.

"Wait." Tamaki said, putting his hand on Kyoya's shoulder.

"Kyoya." He said in a dead serious voice. "Have you thought about what you're doing? Your Father will never allow this. This is a scandal. You will never be able to take over the Ootori throne. You have to abandon this…" He looked at Kaoru. "This frivolous romance, and think like you usually do. What's wrong with you?"

SLAP.

Everyone stood motionless in surprise, as Hikaru scowled, dropping his hand.

Tamaki raised his own hand to his cheek, where a bright red mark was making its debut.

"First. Tamaki-_sempai._ You will NEVER talk about my brother like that, as if he's some… _thing_. Second! Second…" His angry tone dwindled. "Kaoru and Kyoya-sempai are in love. Can't you see that? Well it's not that hard to miss, with the demon lord being so cutesy and all."

He stared at Tamaki. "Sure it took time for me to be convinced, but… you're the one who goes around spouting nonsense about the goddamn spring in your heart or whatever the heck you come up with!"

"But…" Tamaki said, slightly unsure, but still defiant. He looked back at Kyoya.

Tamaki froze, looking like a rabbit caught in the headlights, Hikaru following suit.

"Suoh-sama… Hikaru-kun…" Kyoya said slowly, emphasising every syllable.

Kyoya was emitting his dark purple and black tendrils, his thin lips slightly bent up in one corner.

"Hikaru… I appreciate your help… but 'cutesy' is not a word that I am keen on associating with." He turned to Tamaki. He stared at him for a minute in silence.

"Anger… Disappointment…" He sighed, his threatening aura dissipating. "I don't think I could feel either of these now. Thank you for worrying about me you silly fool, but there's no need. I haven't thought about taking the Ootori crown for years now."

"Ehhhhhh?" Tamaki, Hikaru and Haruhi cried.

"Don't get me wrong, I'm going to take over the world. I'm just going to do it my way."

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** THE ATTACK OF THE FLUFF. THE FLUUUUUUUUUUUUUFF. ARGHHHHHHHHHHHH. *Shifty eyes* It's melting my brainnnnnn. Okay, this fluffy stuff has to stop. Soon. Possibly.

A "Tsundere" is a Japanese word, made up of two phrases, "Tsuntsun" meaning someone who's prickly/ cold, and "Deredere" Which is someone who's quite gooey or whatever XD So a Tsundere is someone who's cold on the outside but gooey on the inside. *Bad at explanations* Just google it.

Yes, it's short, but never fear, because special things come those who wait 3


	12. It's Christmas

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ouran high school host club.

**Chapter 12: Extra- It's Christmas. **

**A/N: Not following the main story, but I thought I'd give this to all of you as a present 3 Merry Christmas everyone! **

_What do you buy someone who has everything at their disposal? Someone rich enough to buy out whole companies, who can use their pocket money to buy vintage cars and jewels the size of their own head? _

…

The Ootori family's annual Christmas party is the premium, VIP party that everyone wants to go to, but are only invited to when they're up there with the top of the top. Guests always include World Leaders; Presidents, Emperors, Monarchs, Popular culture greats; Hollywood giants, Japanese idols, chart-topping musicians, and also the richest of the rich.

And after months of planning by an army of people, it was finally tonight. Of course, with various media moguls and reporters about, everyone looked their best, laughed on cue and acted their parts as if they were scripted.

The Ootori family were stationed at the door to greet guests, by name obviously, and accept any gracious presents/ praise that was given to them.

_Tiffany, Gucci, Cartier, Armani, Ferrari, Knipschildt… the list is endless. _Kyoya thought irritably as he did every year.

It was also the time when marriage proposals were flung around like bids on lumps of meat. And with three prime specimens of men free for the taking in the form of Kyoya and his two elder brothers, as well as the other young men attending the party, mothers and daughters alike make sure to always show their "good sides" ie, they lobbed themselves in the general direction of a rich man, hoping for a chance to talk with them.

Being the eldest, Yuuichi Ootori gained the most attention, the crowd surrounding him always at least 4 people thick, but those with less self-confidence 'made do' with Akito or Kyoya.

"Oh Kyoya-sama, you're looking as dashing as always!"

_Go away, you tedious woman_. Kyoya would think, but smiled anyway, thanking and complimenting the woman in question.

"Oh Kyoya-sama, that charming smile always gets me!"

Kyoya would laugh and bow slightly, thanking, complimenting.

"Oh Kyoya-sama, I hear you're the top of Ouran! Well done!"

Thanks. Compliments.

The repetition of such mundane and annoying tasks made Kyoya irritable, and the generally festive mood didn't help much.

Suddenly he heard the amount of 'Kyaa'-ing go up.

"Dear lord" He muttered, knowing that the storm had arrived.

He turned towards the door and reaffirmed his fears as the Ouran Host club walked in.

"They couldn't come in separately?" He said under his breath. "I bet this was that damn Tamaki's fault." He grimaced and then put on his warmest smile, heading for the entrance.

"My Good Friends!" He announced in his most host-like voice. As he got nearer, he saw that his task was bigger than expected. Not only were the hosts there, but included in the envoy was each of the host's families as well. _I'm going to kill that goddamn idiot_. He growled inside his head.

"Suoh-sama's! What a great pleasure it is to have you!" He discreetly looked over his shoulder, but saw that none of his family was coming to save him. This task was designated as his. "Tamaki-san, looking as dashing as always!" He shook the host king's hand with a grip like metal. Although he was smiling, his eyes clearly told Tamaki that he was in for a world of pain. "And your father and grandmother. Always so dignified."

"Haninozuka, Morinozuka families" He said, moving on. "Mitsukuni-sempai. Takashi-sempai. Good to see you both."

"Fujioka-san! Nice to see you here! Haruhi-kun, it's a pleasure as always."

"Hitachiin-sama." He kissed her hand. "Hikaru-kun." Shook his hand. "Kaoru-kun." His fake smile became real for a second. He bent forward and whispered into his ear. Then he reverted back.

"Welcome to you all! I hope you have an enjoyable time, and I wish you a Merry Christmas!"

He dissolved back into the crowd, not wanting to hang around with people as conspicuous as them.

He found a group of loafers, and mingled with them, engaging in 'conversation' in order to get out of range of the fangirls eyeing him up.

After spending an hour like that, moving from crowd to dreary crowd, he slipped out of the main hall. _One good thing about having the party of the year at your own house_ he thought _is that you can run away when you feel like it. _

He stole his way to his bedroom, closing his eyes as soon as he closed the door behind him. He sighed a sigh of relief. _Silence. At last. _He thought.

"Ahh Kyoya! There you are!"

"I should've guessed." Kyoya said, opening his eyes. Sat on his floor, bed and sofa were the host club members. "No rest for the wicked, as they say."

"Kyoya! You left us at the door, so we decided to wait for you in your room!" Tamaki said, smiling.

"Oh really." Kyoya said in a monotonous voice. "How kind."

They all looked up at him expectantly.

"What?"

"Well… Renge-san said…" Tamaki started

"Renge-chan wants to know whether you or Kao-chan are uke!" Hunny said enthusiastically, wearing a giant grin. "She said that although the obvious choice would be you as the dark lord, a devilish twin might be able to dig out your cute side!" He burst into a giggling fit.

"Everyone out."

"Ehh~~~~~~~~" There was a chorus of disappointed sounds from the room.

Kyoya clenched his fists, his face covered in shadow. "I'll only say this once more. Get. Out."

Tamaki, Hikaru, Mori and Haruhi immediately stood, Mori bending down to lift Hunny up and over his shoulder.

"Come on Kaoru!" Hikaru called from the door.

"No. Kaoru can stay." Kyoya said, slamming the door on them.

Kaoru sighed in relief, lying back on the bed. "Geez, they were so noisy. It's been really hard to keep from hitting them"

Kyoya brought a finger to his lips. "Shhhh."

He walked over to his desk and pressed what looked like a button hidden behind a book. There was the sound of engines quietly coming to life, and eventually what seemed to be a large painting transformed into a board of screens, obviously CCTV cameras that had been placed around the house.

"Woooooaahhhh" Kaoru uttered in amazement, springing up. It wasn't like he wasn't used to monitors this size, but it was so batcave-like, he was astounded.

"I had this installed secretly so that I knew what was going on… I don't like being out of the loop."

Kyoya's nimble fingers typed something in to a keyboard that had also appeared along with a mouse. The screen zoomed in from the hundreds of small, flickering pictures, to one large one. It was the camera focused outside of his door.

What they saw was Hikaru, Tamaki and Hunny, their ears pressed against the door; eavesdropping.

"Those little…" Kaoru muttered, ready to hit his brother.

Kyoya tapped his shoulder from behind, then walked over to a bookshelf.

"No way." Kaoru said in disbelief.

Kyoya smiled, pulling what looked like a book from the shelf. It was, in fact, a lever which activated a secret door.

"No. Waay." Kaoru covered his mouth with his hand. "You evil bastard. That's so cool!"

They walked down the passageway until they reached a pitch black room.

"Close your eyes" Kyoya said softly.

As he did, Kaoru heard the sound of a machine turning on and rotating. _What the…_

"Okay, Open."

As Kaoru opened his eyes, he was instantly transported far away… from Kyoya, from Japan, from Earth, from the Solar System. He was surrounded by thousands, millions of twinkling stars, shimmering galaxies…

"Beautiful…" Was all he could manage.

Kyoya sighed in relief. "Thank heavens… I wanted my first gift to you to be special… but I had no idea what you would want…"

"So you built a state-of-the-art observatory in your own home?"

"Ehmm… Yes."

"Wow…" he twirled around slowly, taking it all in. "'does anyone else know about this?"

"Only the builders… But none of my family members have been at home for the last month, so none of them do…"

Kaoru smiled. _A secret room for star crossed lovers…_ He vigorously shook his head to get rid of the unhappy thought. "So what would happen if this hadn't had worked?" He laughed. "You would've spent a lot of money on someone like me."

Kyoya's face showed extreme concentration for a couple of seconds.

"I came up with two answers, but they're both equally embarrassing. I don't want to say them."

Kaoru pouted. "Pretty please?"

Kyoya sighed, but knew he couldn't resist.

"One. I would have told you that you're worth more to me than all of the money in the world."

"That is adorable, but way too cliché. And really embarrassing. How can you even say that?"

"I don't even know how that came out of my mouth" The dark haired boy admitted, covering his face with his hand.

"Okay, so we both agree to wipe that from memory?"

Kyoya nodded in agreement.

"So number 2?"

"Two. I would offer you anything you want. Anything."

"Neko-mimi."

"Excuse me?"

"Neko-mimi. I wanna see you in Cat ears."

"Excuse me?"

"You offered me anything I wanted. I want to see you with cat ears."

Kyoya started at the smaller boy, red faced.

"What? Why?"

"Because I don't want to waste this opportunity."

"Opportunity?"

"Yup. Opportunity."

"Opportunity for what?"

"To see you as a cute Uke-nyaan."

"'Cute… Uke… Nyaan…'"

"Exactly."

There was a moment of silence as Kyoya tried to take it in.

"You're joking."

"Deadly serious."

"What spurred this on?"

"Well if you're going to tempt me with your cute, fluffy ways, you might as well dress the part."

"Cute… fluffy… ways?"

"Yup."

Kyoya's face was a mix of confusion, embarrassment and disbelief.

"Cute… Uke… Nyaan… Fluffy…"

Amidst his bewilderment, he remembered something.

He smiled evilly.

"Ne~ Kaoru… do you like this observatory?"

The sudden change in attitude stunned the younger boy.

"Umm… yes… a lot…"

"So it was a good present?"

"Yes... very good…" His brow creased in worry. _Oh crap… is sempai having a mental breakdown because of the shock?_ _He's almost in Hysterics..._

"Oh good. That means I don't have to give you another present, doesn't it."

Realisation dawned on Kaoru.

"…but you'll still wear cat ears for me riiiiiiiiiiiight~?" He said, turning bambi-eyes on to full power.

"Ummmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm…"

There was a hopeful light in the redhead's eyes.

"No."

"Fine then."

"Fine."

"Fine."

Kyoya faux coughed, drawing Kaoru's attention. He pointed up.

"Mistletoe? When did that-"

In his head, Kaoru repeated the quote Kyoya had whispered to him merely an hour before.

'_So soft, so calm, so eloquent,  
>The smiles that win, the tints that glow,<br>But tell of days in goodness spent,  
>A mind at peace with all below,<br>A heart whose love in innocent.'_

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** ^_^ Tehe~ Merry Christmas :D

What was that? You want to see Uke Kyo-nyaa? Well you've come to the right place. I've drawn him. Go to my profile and follow the link :D

The Poem is from "She Walks In Beauty" by Lord Byron. Go and read the whole thing. Go on. Do it.

D: Also, search for "La madeline au truffe" or "Knipschildt". Seriously. It's insane.

*stares at clock* MUST SLEEP NOW. Regular story resumes next week 3


	13. Discretion

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ouran high school host club.

**Chapter 13: Discretion. **

Since the night before last, Tamaki had had a complete change of heart. Instead of being displeased with Kyoya and Kaoru's love, he was completely besotted with the idea and constantly pestered them about it.

"So, so!" He piped. "Have you had your first kiss?" His mouth expanded into a massive grin. "Ne, ne! Have you? Have you?"

"Er…" Kaoru said, not sure what to tell him

"Of course! You don't want to tell me something as personal as that right! Then, then… Do you have cute nicknames for each other? Like… like 'Kyo-poo' or.. 'Kao-kins'? Or do you go with the traditional ones like 'cutie pie' and 'muffin' and stuff?" His eyes were brimming with enthusiastic anticipation.

"Tamaki-sempai…" Kaoru said, trying to get his attention

"Actually no! Before that! How did you confess to each other?"

"…you do know that…" Kaoru continued but to deaf ears.

"And where did you go on your first date? The wonderful sea, as large as your love for each other? Or maybe a picnic in a flower filled meadow! Or… or… to a theme park! With action and adventure, then ice cream and popcorn and fireworks and parades and… and…" He realised that he didn't actually know what happened at theme parks other than from the adverts he had seen in between the dramas on the TV. "…stuff! Or, or…"

"Tamaki!" Kyoya finally stood up, lightly banging his fist on the table.

The host king, oblivious to Kyoya's anger, looked up happily. "Yes?"

"Be quiet!"

Tamaki seemed to come to his senses, as he realised the dead silence around them. He looked up to see around fifty girls looking slack-jawed back at him. Then he remembered where he was.

Kaoru had been released from the hospital yesterday morning and had assured everyone that he was fit for school, and for his host club duties.

Not wanting to bring any unwanted attention to themselves, they had decided to keep all of their acts the same. Plus, not being romantic in public suited them both just fine, as Kaoru didn't want anyone else to see the cute Kyoya that belonged only to him, and Kyoya didn't want anyone but Kaoru to know about his weak and, admittedly, needy side.

Of course, they kept Kaoru's recovery a secret, and tried to milk the customers for everything they had.

The twincest act was scripted as so:

H: Kaoru! I was so… *choked sound* …worried about you *tears spring to eyes*  
>K: But… Hikaru… nobody would need me, so even if I were to have… *looks to the floor* died…<br>H: No! You can't leave me! *grips K's shirt*  
>K: *Sniffs, still looking away, winces as if he's in pain*<br>H: I need you… at night, who will stay in bed with me… to keep away the nightmares?  
>K: Hikaru! You're my older brother, you're so much more confident than me… it's me who needs you!<br>H: Then promise me! *puts hand to Kaoru's cheek, and bring his face close* We won't ever leave each other!  
>K: *puts his hand on K's, with a tear in his eye* You'll never leave me?<br>H: Of course! *smiles with sad happiness*  
>K: Oh Hikaru! *clutches H close*<br>~end~

But somewhere around the "nightmares" part, Kaoru suddenly flopped backwards, his knees giving way. Kyoya, who happened to be passing, caught him before he could crash into the floor again. And Tamaki, thinking that they had scripted this as well, guessed that they had given up trying to cover up the relationship, so he started asking the questions.

As realisation hit them, the host club customers gained a gleam in their eyes.

Renge, who, with her 'moe- sensors', had foreseen something juicy to come, had had her camera out, recording every second. She already knew about the two from a slip of the tongue from Tamaki before, but had been 'politely warned' by Kyoya to keep her mouth shut.

The "Kyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!" was loud enough to draw the attraction of every girl (and most of the boys) to the hosts, who were now being displayed on massive screens which had appeared out of nowhere on the walls around the school, being fed with the live feed from her camera.

"So… are we, or are we not telling them about your undying love?" Tamaki said with an innocent smile.

The host club members collectively face-palmed.

"You idiot." Kyoya muttered, inaudible due to the squeals of joy from around him.

…

Then there was war.

Fangirl war.

The two fractions: The "Twincest group" vs. The "Opposites attract".

The former, a group of girls adamant that the twins belonged together, and that Kyoya was merely a simple distraction.

The latter called so because of the relationship between Kyoya with his icy cool looks and Kaoru with his passionate personality and red hair.

There was no violence; ladies of their standing wouldn't ever dream of actually fighting- they simply chanted whilst they paraded down the halls, handed out fliers, and rallied their troops.

Almost every member of the school was dragged into either side- even some of the female teachers joined in.

Most of the people in the groups didn't even care about the romance- they were simply thinking about how it would affect their family's standing- did they have more business relations with the Hitachiin's or the Ootori's?

By the end of the day, 1/3 of the school owned a flag which read 'twincest forever.' Everyone else's read 'opposites attract.'

The only exceptions were the rest of the teachers and the host club themselves.

"What have you done, you fool." Kyoya sighed at Tamaki. _So much for discretion._

The host club came together to decide what to do next.

"Hika-chan could pretend to be distraught at having his brother taken away from him ending in a Kyo-chan vs. Hika-chan duel!" Was Hunny's idea.

"No." Kyoya said. "It sounds as if we're having a childish fight over a toy."

"Then Kyoya and Kaoru should be 'lovey dovey' AT ALL TIMES!" Tamaki pronounced, excreting sparkles. "Then no one could deny your love!"

Everyone ignored him and carried on.

"I guess you couldn't deny all allegations?" Haruhi questioned.

"I doubt it." Kyoya indicated to a curled up Tamaki with his chin. "All of our customers take the idiot King's words as if they're gospel."

"Hmmm…" Hurhi thought.

"A play." Mori said.

Kyoya sighed, having guessed what was about to come.

"I didn't really want to follow that route… but if you agree with it, Mori-sempai, I doubt I could deny its effectiveness." He nudged his glasses back in place.

"What play? What route? What's happening?" Kaoru asked, confused.

"We don't have to worry about the media." Kyoya said darkly, as if to himself. "They wouldn't dare print anything against the Ootori name without solid proof" He knew full well that the 3rd Music room had been bugged by three different companies, all looking for the big scoop. "Would they." He could almost hear whoever was listening into the devises break into a cold sweat and turn the mics off.

"Okay, we've got things to plan." He said, this time addressing the host club before him.

"Things to plan?" Hikaru said, voicing the thoughts of the other host club members.

"Yes. For 'Your Undying Love.'"

Hikaru stared at him blankly. "My undying love?" He said, completely baffled.

"No, of course not, Hikaru. The host club's new play, 'Your Undying Love.'"

Kyoya was met with more blank looks.

"Think about what Tamaki said earlier. Technically, he never said our names. And he said 'So… are we, or are we not telling them about your undying love?' We just need to fill in the gaps with excuses."

Still no comprehension.

Kyoya sighed, exasperated.

"Tamaki was rehearsing his script for our new play called 'Your Undying Love' which I got angry at him for, because it's meant to be a surprise for our wonderful customers?"

"Wait… so… are you and I going to be the main characters?" Kaoru asked Kyoya.

"I'd rather not" Kyoya said, with a gentle tone. "I'd rather you work on the costume design and script with me."

"Then how're we going to pull off Tamaki saying his lines to us?" Kaoru said. To him, this didn't sound like a clever plan at all.

Kyoya stared at Mori and Hikaru in turn.

"Maybe our unfortunate positions at the time triggered of our idiot king's act?"

Kaoru sighed, still not getting it.

"And the explanation for us simple human beings?"

"'Your Undying Love' is to be a sort of… alternate and modern rendition of 'Pride and Prejudice.'" Kyoya said, after a moment of thought. He **was** making this up on the spot, after all.

"Mr Darcy, played by our very own Mori-sempai, is still as stoic and mostly silent as usual. Elizabeth Bennett, or Hikaru, is just as lively and passionate as always. Set just after Liz and Darcy confess their feelings; Mr Bingley- or Tamaki- grills his best friend about their relationship.

"Therefore, when we get Tamaki, practising his lines on a tall male with black hair holding Hikaru's twin in a…" He coughed, cheeks slightly tinting red "…loving embrace, who could blame him?"

Kaoru lifted an eyebrow. It might, possibly work. Maybe.

Tamaki slunk over, a blue aura surrounding him due to being ignored. "Motherrrr~" He called.

"So… are we, or are we not telling them about your undying love?" He asked again.

Kyoya sighed, deciding to leave the details for latter. "Well… we don't have to tell them…" He pulled kaoru close to him. "But if they work it out, I don't really mind... do you?"

"Oh, not at all, my dear Kyo-poo" Kaoru chuckled in a gooey voice, his face plastered with an evil grin.

Kyoya looked at him with a cruel glint. "Oh good, my sweet Kao-kins. I'm ever so delighted."

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** Ughhhhhhhhhhhhh. This took forever to come up with XD But at least something's happening, eh?


	14. Abject humiliation

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ouran high school host club.

**Chapter 14: Abject humiliation (:D JAFAR)**

**A/N: **I am unfortunately suffering from a severe case of writers block. Any ideas/ requests as to what you want to happen, I'm all ears (XD And the title was the only inspiration I had for this chapter…)

* * *

><p>Kyoya and Kaoru entered the room together, engaged in the conversation they were always having. How to take over the world. Some of their fangirls had caught onto the fact that they were dating, but the vast majority had succumbed to the rumour that Kyoya had saved Kaoru from a terrible accident, which had left him eternally in the older boy's favour and that since then, they had become friends.<p>

As they came in, they frowned as they were met by the usual arguments/ general racket that four of the members were making.

"Tamaki-semapai, stop grinning like a perv. It's sickening." Haruhi said.

"Daughter! Why would you use such disgusting words? Was it Hikaru that taught you such things?"

"What? Why me?" The redhead objected, looking up from his game.

"Seriously. Stop with the smiling." Haruhi said, her face looking vaguely repulsed.

"Why me? Why not Kaoru… or… uhh… Hunny-sempai?" Hikaru complained.

"Hunny-sempai? It was you? Why would you teach my daughter such foul words?" Tamaki turned to the smaller blonde with an appalled face.

"Hika-chan, stop telling Tama-chan lies. It will only do him bad."

"So it wasn't you, Hunny-sempai? Hikaru! Why would you lie to me?"

"I bet he's thinking stupid thoughts about commoners again." Haruhi muttered.

"I only asked why you automatically assumed it was me." Hikaru said to the host king angrily.

"Hika-chan, why would you suggest it was me? Do you hate me?" Hunny said, welling up.

"Hikaru! Why did you teach cute little Haruhi such foul words?" Tamaki said, ignoring everyone else.

A thick wad of paper crashed down onto the table in front of the Host Prince, causing him to jump back, his eyes the size of saucers.

"This is the script." Kyoya said monotonously.

There was a sudden silence in the third music room.

"How the hell did you finish it so fast?" Hikaru asked.

"I had Kaoru to help me."

"Exactly. How the hell did you finish it so fast?"

"What do you mean?" Kyoya inquired, crossing his arms.

"You were alone in the same room as my brother, aka your boyfriend. How the hell did you finish it so fast?"

"Well I'm glad we're your main focus in life, Hikaru, but perhaps you should get a hobby." Kaoru groaned.

"I do have a hobby!" Hikaru protested. "Teasing you/milord and playing video games are my hobbies." He laughed.

"Well I'm glad you're living a productive life, Hikaru. But hopefully I can change that." Kyoya said, dropping another wad of paper first in front of Hikaru, then Mori, Haruhi and Hunny. "You are to learn your lines in 3 weeks." He announced.

"What? I'm in it too, sempai?" Haruhi cried.

"We all know about Haru-chan's acting ability, so why did you give her a role?" Hunny said frankly.

Kyoya raised an eyebrow. "I shall explain your parts momentarily." He replied. Then he nodded at Kaoru who took out a large sketchbook and set it on the table.

"As I said before, our two main characters are Kyohei and Kaori. Kyohei, or Mr. Darcy is played by Mori sempai. He doesn't have many lines, and is quite expressionless, which suits the sempai's character very well. Kaori, or Elizabeth is played by Hikaru. She's opinionated and argumentative, which is perfect for you." He looked at the two. Mori nodded, giving his approval, and Hikaru sighed knowing that he had no choice but to go along with the plan.

"Next we have mister and misses Bennett, Elizabeth's parents. Mr. Bennett also doesn't talk much, and goes along with his wife's upbeat pace, but is known to be kind natured, which is why Haruhi will be playing this role, with Hunny-sempai as her wife." He now turned to these two, who both nodded, Haruhi doubtfully, and Hunny excitedly.

"Tamaki, you're going to be Mr. Bingley, Darcy's handsome but dim witted best friend."

Tamaki frowned. "Why is Haruhi being a man? She should be a female! With a beautiful Georgian dress' and long curly hair"

Hikaru smiled. "Milord, weren't you listening to Kyoya-sempai the other day? It's a modern rendition of the novel." If Kyoya was going to be with his brother in the long term, the best he could do was _sort of_ get on his good side…

"Yes, that is what I had said before, but when Renge-san found out, she scrapped that idea, and advised me that what the fans want to see is waistcoats and petticoats."

Hikaru's eye twitched. _Never again am I going to suck up to the shadow lord_. He thought, irritated at himself.

Kaoru opened up his sketchbook, displaying his pages of designs.

"I'm rather proud of these, so none of you are going to change characters, you must turn up to every rehearsal, and you will learn your lines to perfection." He beamed, with more than a hint of evil.

"Oh crap, Kaoru's gone all shadow lord on us" Hikaru shuddered in alarm.

"Oh dear. Our biggest fan is criticizing us." Kyoya joked.

"Frikkin' heck. Now Kyoya's smiling. What is the world coming to?"

Kaoru smacked his brother around his head.

"Now I need to do your measurements." Kaoru said, addressing the whole club.

"Why? Don't you have our measurements from last week?" Hikaru asked. "Plus, I'm the exact size of you."

Kaoru smiled sweetly. "No big brother, I think you've gained a little around the stomach…"

"Pfft" All 6 membered laughed, averting eye contact as Hikaru let out a low growl.

"Fine. Be like that." Hikaru pouted, poking his brother in the rib cage. "But I preferred it when you were the uke."

Kyoya shot Hikaru a scornful look, but Kaoru grinned at him, trying to send him a 'see? Look who's seme' message.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** Okay, once again it's short and late ;_; I'm so sorry. I procrastinate. And have writer's block. Yes. ANY IDEAS PEOPLE. If I get any ideas I like, I'll post chapter 15 earlier next week (Also, I'm slightly more inspired by my other story atm. But only slightly. Very, very, very slightly. )


	15. Moves like jagger?

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ouran high school host club.

**Chapter 15: Moves like jagger?**

The weeks leading up to the play were chaotic to say the least. Tickets for all three days were sold out twenty minutes after the sales were opened, and the last ten VIP tickets, which were auctioned off, went for prices which could easily buy a Ferrari or three.

They had announced the play on the day of Tamaki's outburst so that it wouldn't cause too much of a stir, but hadn't given much away. The only thing that they had allowed Renge to tell her fangirl army was that it was most definitely a romance.

They had also announced that, for the right price, they were holding auditions to those wanting to be minor characters in the play.

Kyoya had mainly worked on casting and directing, with Kaoru making the costumes, but they often met up to 'discuss' something or another in the privacy of what Hikaru had dubbed their 'observatory-slash-love nest-slash-workshop'. Kyoya had been convinced by Kaoru to show the rest of the host club the beautiful room because, what with them disappearing all the time, Hikaru had repeatedly assumed that they had eloped together.

The observatory had turned out to be larger than Kaoru had first realised. The main part of the room was the observation deck, but below that was a sofa area with a massive HD TV. Next to that was a mini kitchen, with a fridge, kettle, sink and a couple of cupboards. And behind all of this was a large workspace, obviously made specifically for him. It contained hundreds of rolls of every material imaginable, dozens of manikins and rows upon rows of rails to hang up all of his costumes. There was also a designing area where various tables, pens, paints and other miscellaneous equipment lay.

They spent their days milling about down here, Kyoya sometimes standing behind the younger boy, watching him work, trying to focus on what he was being taught, rather than being distracted by the elegance of Kaoru's fingers, the gracefulness of his body as he worked, the stunning look of concentration on his face... Kaoru also tried helping Kyoya, flicking through the hours of taped material they had, deciding whether girl 233 was better for part A or part B, whether boy 148 was better than… better than… the warmth of the raven haired boy's leg against his, and the smile that only he knew about…

Yeah. They were distracted.

But that didn't stop them from ruling over the other members with an iron grip.

All in all though, the host club were having fun.

Mostly.

"Ka-o-ru." Hikaru called when he heard his twin arrive back home.

"Yes, what can I do for you sir?" Kaoru smiled warmly.

"What. Is. This?" The script landed on the table in front of the younger brother. "And don't say 'the script'" He scowled.

Kaoru folded his arms. "A wad of paper?"

"No! I mean, what's this?" Hikaru pointed at the page, onto which he had evidently chocked out the drink he had been drinking at the time.

"Ohhh" Kaoru said, smiling. "Well it's a romance! There has to be a kiss scene in it."

"Kiss. Scene. A KISS SCENE?"

"Yup."

"But… But this is between…"

"Kaori and Kyohei."

"Mori-sempai and I… kiss?"

Kaoru clapped his hands sarcastically. "Well done."

"B-bu-but…" He frowned, not wanting to look childish and innocent. _My first kiss… My first three kisses!_ He surprised himself as tears pricked his eyes. He instantly rubbed them furiously, as if he was frustrated, or had a raging headache, which he was, and did.

Kaoru's phone beeped as he got a text. He looked down at it, a smile blooming on his face, and he texted back immediately. "Was there anything else?" He asked his brother without looking up from the screen. Getting no reply, he just dashed away to their bedroom, which they still shared, but now contained two medium beds instead of the single king-sized one.

Kaoru grinned. This was the payback that Kyoya and Kaoru had planned for Hikaru. Kyoya because he was still very annoyed at being referred to as the 'uke' and Kaoru because, well, he loved pranking his brother. They weren't actually going to kiss; in fact only Hikaru's script had that line in it, and they would tell him a week before the actual day… but for now, they were going to observe how he reacted.

Hikaru stood where he had been left; eyes still clamped shut with his fists clenched and his body straight as a line. His head hung slightly, and he trembled lightly. He took a deep breath, and suddenly opened his eyes. _I have to do something about this_. He thought resolutely. _But who can I talk to this about? Definitely not Kaoru and the evil Shadow Lord, they're the ones who started it. Certainly not milord, he doesn't seem right as the role as a counsellor. I don't want to talk to Haruhi about it, she probably wouldn't understand. I'd be damned if I went to see Renge about it. Hunny, although he sometimes does show his intelligence, that is only sometimes. So then… Mori-sempai? I mean, he's in the same boat as me. Surely he'd want to save his first kiss for someone special? _

So that decided it. He was going to visit the Morinozuka household. He looked down at himself. _But not looking like this. _He may be distraught, but he was still a Hitachiin.

* * *

><p>The Morinozuka dojo was large and old looking, but very beautiful. Hikaru rung the bell, and on of the students opened the door.<p>

"Umm… Hi. I've come to see Mori- Takashi sempai."

He was shown into a room, and asked to wait while someone went to fetch him. Soon after, the door slid open, and Mori walked into the room frowning.

"Hikaru… is something wrong?"

"Sempai! Have you read the script?"

Mori nodded in his stoic way.

"Then you know about the kiss? What do you think about it? Even if it is a romance, we're still guys, you know?"

"That…" Mori started, confused.

"I bet was that damn Demon Kyoya's fault! He's always treated me badly!"

"…not…"

"And Kaoru's just as bad! Why the fuck does he just go along with these things? Making his own brother do things like this?"

"Hikaru. That doesn't happen in my script." Mori finally managed to say.

The younger boy was silent for a minute in disbelief. Mori took out his script and gave it to him. Hikaru hastily flicked through the pages, and saw the scene which had been replaced.

"If there was a kiss scene, Renge-san would have already made doujinshis about it." Mori said, with a reassuring tone.

Hikaru's knees seemed to turn to jelly, and feeling weak, he sank to the floor.

"Are you okay?"

Hikaru laughed. "I'm so glad. Not that I have anything against you, sempai, I just don't… uh…"

The taller boy looked away, unnoticed by the redhead.

"I can't believe that Kaoru tricked me. Mori-sempai, you're clever. Help me get back at him."

"Hmm..."

"Hmm?"

"You could pretend that the kiss is a good idea. Let it slip to someone."

Hikaru frowned. "Uhh… Mori sempai… doesn't that mean that we'll actually have to…"

Mori knelt down in front of him.

Hikaru's eyes opened wide as Mori kissed him.

The shock stopped him from moving, and before he could push the other boy away, it was over.

"M…m…ki… you… kiss…"

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** Kekeke. Mori? What? Heheeeeee~

I think I'm actually incapable of doing angst when I'm writing ff, unless it involves making Kyoya an uke… I had also planned on doing something very big, (yes, bigger than this) but I can't bring myself to type it xD

Also, I had no idea what to put for the title, so I resorted to the song that's been stuck in my head.


	16. Out of my head

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ouran high school host club.

**Chapter 16: **Out of my head

* * *

><p>Hikaru sat in his bedroom alone with his legs pulled up to his chest and his arms wrapped around them, his chin resting on his knees. He was like this with his headphones on, listening to whatever song came on to his iPod. He was trying to forget what just happened, but he couldn't. So he tried to think of ways in which he could've avoided the situation.<p>

But it had been too unexpected. It wasn't as if he had known or even had the inkling that Mori would kiss him.

_Why did he k-ki-ki… do that to me?_ Was the biggest question whirring around his head.

_It's Mori. It must be part of an elaborate plan. But even Mori wouldn't do something so drastic. Would he? I mean… It's a k-ki-kiss. Not a bear hug. Not on the cheeks. Not even a peck. A full on. K-kiss. _

He let out a nervous, shaky laugh.

_He couldn't… have… feelings for me?_

He scrunched up his eyes, and tried to focus on the song playing.

'_So get out, get out, get out of my head'_

His lip twitched into a small smile at how well the lyrics matched his mood.

'And fall into my arms instead.'

_Fuck._ He thought, ripping the headphones off of his head.

_Stupid One Direction and their stupid songs._ He thought angrily. He had been designated as the Host Club's pop master; i.e. he had to listen to songs which their fangirls may like, watch TV shows they may like, and keep up-to-date with celebrity culture. All of which was predominantly about boy bands. Which, he had to admit, he didn't hate most of the time.

But they sure had ways of annoying you when you didn't need annoying.

So now he sat in silence, staring out of the window wistfully.

_What am I, a fucking widow? _

"It's like I'm in mourning or something!" He shouted, scowling and jumping up, off of the bed.

_It was a kiss! I wasn't fucking raped or something._ He thought, angry at himself.

He grabbed his coat and made it to the door before realising that he had no place go to. Haruhi was studying extremely hard at the moment, and had warned of dire consequences for anybody who disturbed her. Tamaki was busy today, dealing with another of his grandmother's requests of him. Even Hunny was out of the question, because Hikaru was sure that the small blonde was way more observant than he let on.

He suddenly realised how the group's relationships had suddenly changed with just one couple getting together.

He dropped his coat where he was and walked back to the bed, resuming the position he had been in for the last few hours.

He didn't know how to feel. He wasn't feeling angry. He wasn't feeling sad. He wasn't feeling rejected, or annoyed, or pained or jealous or spiteful.

Then his thoughts turned back, as always, to the kiss. How had Mori felt when he had kissed him? As if he was doing his duty? Amorous?

He lightly banged his head against his knees, trying to get the association of 'amorous' and 'Mori' out of his head.

Then he groaned as the years of being dirty minded were put to use, his brain conjuring up… less than decent images. One involving handcuffs and Big Ben.

He resumed hitting his head against his knees, but harder, trying to replace the images with pain.

He heard the door open, but he ignored it, not wanting to give up on the method when it might work anytime soon.

Kaoru frowned as he came in. He hadn't pranked Hikaru before. Was this how he responded to it? Self-harm? Kyoya and he exchanged curious glances. They had only come up to check whether he was still alive, seeing as Hikaru usually spent all of his time trying to remind the couple that they weren't alone in the house- usually by making a lot of noise. The silence had unnerved them, and Kaoru hadn't wanted to come up by himself.

His twin didn't seem to have noticed his entry, so he coughed, trying to get the boy's attention. When that didn't work, he walked in the direction of the bed. Unfortunately, he hadn't noticed the disregarded coat on the floor. Hitachiins always took pride in their clothing, and never dumped stuff on the floor, so he wasn't expecting it, the smooth material not helping him regain his balance. He let out a startled cry, which was the beginnings of a swear word, but, unlike the last time he had fell, Kyoya was always on guard around the younger boy, an intense need to protect taking over his body, so he managed to catch Kaoru before any injury was done.

This brought Hikaru's head swiftly up, and his jaw dropped when he guessed what had happened.

"Kaoru! Are you okay?" He jumped off of the bed and ran over to his little brother, who was still being strongly held by Kyoya.

"Kyo~ you can let go now." Kaoru said, sounding rather reluctant, but needing to get rid of distraction.

'Kyo~' rested his chin on the younger boy's shoulder for a moment, but deciding that it was more beneficial for all three of them if he let go, he did so, but only moving back a couple of centimetres.

Hikaru frowned in disbelief. In such a short amount of time, his brother had tamed the Demon Lord like a cat. "Kyo?" He asked.

Kyoya growled, obviously irritated that he had a new, and much less scary nickname.

"Yes. Apparently, two syllables is far too much effort for Kaoru, so he had to simplify my name to 'Kyo'." He said it was so much vehemence, just daring Hikaru to laugh so that he had a valid excuse to release his embarrassment through anger.

Kaoru mock pouted, then smirked. "Kyo~ Your reaction is so much different from earlier… You were so cute then~"

Kyoya hid his blush by turning around, declaring that he had to go home to do some accounting for the play. He was just out of the door before he turned around and kissed Kaoru on the cheek. Then he briskly walked away, saying nothing more.

Hikaru stared into the now unoccupied space which the Demon lord had just left. He tried to form a sentence to describe his bemusement, but nothing came to mind, so he just sighed. His eyes lingered on his brother for a few more seconds before he went back to his bed. This time, he just lay flat on the bed, staring at the ceiling.

"Hikaru? Are you okay?"

Hikaru's face became a sea of emotions for a second as he wondered what to do._ Do I tell him? But that means he'll know that his prank worked. But I don't know what to do about Mori. So… angry? I should be angry? But angry never gets me anywhere… _He rubbed his head with annoyance.

Kaoru raised an eyebrow. Hikaru had never been one to think before he spoke, so this was a new experience that he wasn't sure he liked.

"Kaoru… He… kissed me."

Kaoru's eyes instantly widened, completely confused.

"Excuse me?"

"Mori. Kissed. Me." Hikaru said slowly.

Kaoru relaxed. Hikaru must be too tired from trying to learn the script. "Hikaru. He didn't kiss you. And he won't. It was only a joke."

Hikaru sighed, he had predicted this. "Kaoru. He kissed me."

"No. Like I told you, it's a fake script. He's not going to kiss you."

Hikaru was silent for a second, then he gave up on the whole 'thinking' thing. "But he did. He fucking did."

"Hika-"

"NO! HE FUCKING KISSED ME, KAORU."

Now it was Kaoru's turn to be silent. The seriousness in his twin's voice made him falter. "When? What happened, Hikaru?"

"Like I fucking know. But he did. He kissed me."

Kaoru rubbed the scar on the back of his head; a new habit of his that he did unconsciously when he was worried or thinking.

"What happened?" He repeated. Knowing Hikaru, the situation was being hyped up.

"I went to his dojo to ask him about your script. Then he kissed me. On the lips." He curled up, feeling really embarrassed.

Kaoru didn't know what to do. He wasn't good at situations like this. "One sec. I'll call Kyoya." He said, pulling out his phone.

"'Kyoya'? Not 'Kyo'?" Hikaru said, shaking his head, utterly confounded at how a 'lovey-dovey' mind worked.

…

He had been convinced by Kyoya and Kaoru that talking with Mori was a good idea.

And now he was sitting in the same room where the incident had started. He had found the silence unnerving, so he had said the first thing that had come into his head. Which had been 'fish'.

Unsurprisingly, Mori had been content in the silence, but the sudden and quite odd word threw him.

"Fish?"

Hikaru flinched at what used to be such a familiar and relaxing voice. "I dunno." He muttered, not wanting to bring up the… kiss. He thought about every time he had had a conversation with Mori. Which wasn't very often. Most of the time it was him being scolded at by the older boy.

Out of nowhere, his mind conjured up more unwanted pictures of Mori.

He felt his face burn up, so he tried to hide it by rubbing his eyes with both hands.

'_Never regret what's happened. If it's good, it's wonderful. If it's bad, it's experience.' _

Mori's words echoed in his head. His hands still covered his face, which increased his confidence slightly, as if the other boy wasn't in the room.

"Mori-sempai. Why did you kiss me?"

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** _'Words like this in italics and underlined'_ are song lyrics if you hadn't noticed xD Oh, and I don't like One Direction, if you were wondering. But songs get stuck in my head too easily .

Yaaaaaaaaaaaaay cliffhangers :D

Thank you, as always, to my wonderful reviewers 3


	17. Another plan

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ouran high school host club.

**Chapter 17: Another plan…**

* * *

><p><em>~1 week ago~<em>

"Yes, father, that is what I'm saying."

"What's his name?"

"His name is… Hikaru Hitachiin! Get down from ther-…"

_*beep*_

"Hikaru… Hitachiin…"

* * *

><p><em>~Present day~<em>

"He's done it? Good. Report back to me later." The black-haired man put the phone back in its cradle on the desk. Then he steepled his hands together, staring at the photograph lying on his desk.

* * *

><p>…<p>

Several long, heavy seconds passed, soon becoming a minute, then two…

Hikaru frowned behind his hands. After another few seconds, his apprehension became courage and he quickly lowered his hands. He blinked at the sudden bright light.

His eyes widened as he was rooted to the spot.

Less than five centimetres away from his face was Mori's.

He could feel the older boy's warm breath against his face.

"Shhh." Mori whispered, pushing him to the floor.

* * *

><p>Kaoru rested his head on Kyoya's shoulder as they sat on one of the sofas in their 'observatory-slash-love nest-slash-workshop'. Kyoya had the script rolled up in one hand, and was tapping it into the palm of his other.<p>

On the table in front of them was a laptop.

On the screen was Kyoya's e-mail inbox.

In the inbox was an e-mail.

From Renge.

The title alone had been dubiously named: 'RE: The fangirls demand it.' Which never bode well in any context. But this situation was worse than normal.

"I think… we might have gone too far." Kaoru said hesitantly.

Kyoya 'hmm'-d in agreement.

The e-mail was pretty simple.

There was a photograph; obviously taken from some ninja hiding spot in the Morinozuka household.

It was a photograph of Hikaru and Mori.

Kissing.

Underneath, there were two simple lines of text.

'\(^_^)/ We know it's a spoiler for the play, but we had to make sure that you didn't cut it from the script. Lots of love, Renge and the fangirls 3'

"Hikaru is _**not**_going to be happy."

Kyoya frowned. They would have to add the scene to the play, whether the older twin liked it or not.

He sighed as his phone vibrated, making him pull away from the redhead beside him.

'_Your suspicions were correct. –F'_

His frown deepened as he read the text.

"He's blackmailing…" He muttered, the rest of his sentence coming out too quiet to be heard.

* * *

><p>This time, Hikaru tried to struggle against Mori's strong hold, but after a few seconds, he realised it was a futile gesture.<p>

_Shit shit shit shit shit shit shit shit shit._

Mori pinned him to the ground, and leaned in so that his lips were right beside the younger's ear.

"Listen to me."

* * *

><p>Kaoru pouted as Kyoya got up. "Kyo~ where are you going?"<p>

"I have some business to attend to." Kyoya said, feeling a pang of guilt for keeping secrets from the younger boy.

Kaoru stared at the raven haired boy's face for a second, and saw the look that Kyoya got when he had a plan that he wouldn't…. couldn't tell anyone else. He knew that Kyoya had a good reason to leave, and also that he felt bad doing it.

"Oh crap! I have to finish the hem on Haruhi's waistcoat!" Kaoru said, jumping up. He went to rush off the workshop, but was caught by the older boy as he went past. "What?" He said, leaning into the other boy.

"Thank you" Kyoya said, hugging him tight.

"You'd better tell me all about this business of yours later." Kaoru pouted, hugging the taller boy back. He stepped back, his face serious. "Don't let any girls get near you. You're mine, you hear?"

"Yes, dear" Kyoya teased, showing one of the smiles that he only revealed around Kaoru. He kissed the top of the smaller boy's head, and then turned to the door.

"Or boys!" Kaoru called to him as he exited the room.

* * *

><p>Hikaru had just got home when Kaoru had told him about the new addition to the script, then they had had to go to the rehearsals.<p>

"Fine."

Kaoru frowned at how easily his brother had taken the news.

A little under 3 hours ago, Hikaru could've stabbed him if he had even said the word 'kiss'.

Now, the older twin just nodded, then got into the limo.

_What the hell happened at Mori's house,_ Kaoru wondered, _to make __**Hikaru**__ speechless?_

* * *

><p>The next few days passed without much trouble, the rehearsals practised until they were perfect, and then some more. The only problem had been a small hole in the floor backstage, but that had been carefully cordoned off with luminous tape.<p>

Finally it was the day of the play.

The atmosphere back stage was energetic and hyper.

There was a low murmur in the darkness behind the curtain.

Kyoya paced around, regularly checking that everything was going well, and Kaoru, wielding his sewing kit, made small repairs or adjustments.

So far, the audience had been enthralled, laughing jollily at the jokes, exclaiming in shock at the storyline that they all knew.

It finally got to the interlude before the last act.

The audience (mainly comprised of host club fangirls) sat on the front of their seats, collectively holding their breath, not daring to leave their seats in case anything juicy happened without them.

Hikaru stood at stage left, puffing out the many layers of his skirt, taking deep breaths. A few girls buzzed around him, applying the stage make-up which he couldn't apply by himself.

Suddenly, there was a hushed silence, as the curtain started to rise. He wasn't needed on stage for a good ten minutes, but he had to be ready.

He shivered as he felt breath on his neck.

"Good luck." Mori whispered in his ear before striding on stage.

Hikaru took a couple more breaths to calm his erratic heartbeat.

There were so many people bustling about him and the air was heavy with heat, sweat and concentration.

"I need some air." He choked out to one of the girls around him who nodded and scurried off to tell Kaoru.

He made his way through the swarm of people who all seemed the same to him.

Someone gently nudged him out of the way, and out of instinct, he turned to unleash a stream of swear words at the perpetrator.

But before he could, he was pushed again. This time stronger and more purposefully.

"Fuc-"

Too late, he saw the bright green tape on the floor, as he stumbled and caught his foot awkwardly in the small hole in the floor.

He landed with a mighty crash, pain immediately shooting up from his ankle which lay at a weird position underneath him.

Tears sprung to his eyes and he swore loudly, just as his brother reached him.

"Hikaru? Hikaru! What happened!"

"I think I've broken my fucking ankle." He groaned, trying to move his body weight from the injury, only causing another flare of pain.

"Crap, Hikaru." Kaoru sighed. "There's only 10 minutes until you're supposed to go on stage."

Hikaru shot his brother a look. "Kaoru. Fucking. Call. A. Fucking. Ambulance. I need some fucking painkillers. Now."

Kaoru frowned, then spotted Kyoya nearby. "Kyo!" He called.

The older boy didn't hear the first time, but Kaoru called again, and Kyoya turned around, seemingly grasping the situation instantly.

He had his phone pressed to his ear already, which Kaoru simply put down to him having amazing reflexes.

But Kaoru knew something was wrong when Kyoya's jaw dropped, and he ended the call he had been taking, briskly walking over, pushing up his glasses.

He silently reached for Hikaru's leg, which he examined for a couple of seconds, calling the younger boy to flinch.

"Hikaru. You know you're not actually supposed to brake your leg, right?"

Both twins stared at him. Then Kaoru half-smiled at the poor excuse of a joke.

"The saying? 'Break a leg'?" Kyoya sighed. "It was a joke. Forget it."

Hikaru shook his head slowly, trying to supress the laughter that was threatening to bubble up and earn him a hit on the head from his brother.

A small girl came up to them hesitantly. "Hitachiin-sama, you have three-minutes!" She whispered as loudly as she could muster.

Kaoru froze. "Hikaru- you can't…"

Kyoya sighed. "Hikaru. Take your dress off."

"Ooh, Kyoya I didn't know you could be so forward!"

Kaoru whacked his brother on his head.

"Fine, fine."

"Kaoru. Strip." Kyoya said, looking away.

This time it was Kaoru's jaw which dropped. "Huh?"

"I'm truly sorry Kaoru, but being Hikaru's twin…"

"No! Kyoya! You know what's about to-" He faced Hikaru, then turned back to the black-haired boy. "I can't kiss another man, Kyoya!"

Kyoya frowned sadly and stood up, re-opening his phone, calling for an ambulance.

"Kyoya! Don't ignore me!" Kaoru also stood up, trying in vain to look threatening. But he was answered by silence. "Fine! Fine." He ripped off his shirt and trousers, pulling on the discarded dress.

He walked off, huffing.

Kyoya stood with his hands clenched.

"Kyoya. You need to-" Hikaru started, but he was cut off by the glare he was given.

"I KNOW!" Kyoya snapped. "I know." He repeated before stalking off.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** Okay, I know I always say this, but I have an extremely bad cold. I haven't even re-read this yet. I'll edit it later, when I'm not hurting… but yeah. Thanks to people who need to be thanked… and something. I'm tired, and will now proceed to die. If it doesn't make sense, be sure to tell me.


	18. Ever closer

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ouran high school host club.

**Chapter 18: Ever closer.**

* * *

><p>Kyoya had taken the call as soon as Kaoru had left his side.<p>

They had been walking around backstage together the whole night, checking for any mishaps, the two mostly inseparable.

Kyoya's phone had been constantly vibrating the whole night, but he had been ignoring it.

He knew who the caller was, and he didn't like it.

This was only the second time that his father had been calling him.

Kaoru had just run off, informed that an extra's coat needed fixing.

Left alone, his will was quickly chipped away, and he whisked the phone out of his pocket.

"Hello. Ootori Kyoya speaking." He said, purely to waste time. "How can I help you?"

"Kyoya. Are you busy?"

"I am. But I can spare you a few minutes." Kyoya said, his cheeky-ness suddenly bubbling out, whereas only a couple of months ago, he would rather hold his tongue, despite detaching himself from the Ootori company.

The leader of the Ootori company sighed. He didn't like this new Kyoya already. "I am going to put this bluntly, Kyoya. You're an intelligent boy." He emphasised the 'boy'. "And I need you to stop… how would the young put it… 'going out' with that Hitachiin boy."

"That 'Hitachiin boy' has a name." Kyoya said, bristling at his father's tone.

"Hitachiin Hikaru." The man grumbled, pronouncing every syllable.

"Hi-Hikaru? What?" Kyoya's eyes widened.

"Yes. That's what you told me."

Disbelief filled Kyoya's mind, rendering him speechless.

"Of course, I have nothing against the Hitachiin family. But I cannot afford for you to be with that boy. I need you to marry into… No, I'm just `worried about your future."

"Father."

"Yes?" The reply was hesitant.

"No."

There was silence on the other side of the line. "I thought you may say that." His voice was expectant but annoyed. "So I made some… arrangements."

Kyoya sighed. "I know. You've been blackmailing one of my friends." Friends. A word he had barely used before sounded nice in his mouth.

"It's all for your own good, Kyoya."

The boy in question thought he heard his name being called someone else, but he wasn't sure.

"Father, I'm not going to-" this time, he heard his name being called with more urgency.

He whipped his head around to find Hikaru in pain on the floor and Kaoru shouting for him.

In his head, he heard his father's voice say Hikaru's name with as much venom possible. He almost swore as he put the two together. 'Some arrangements' indeed.

Not even bothering to end his conversation with his father, he simply hung up.

* * *

><p>He had had to make the hardest decision of his life.<p>

To tell Kaoru to kiss Mori.

It physically hurt him- his heart felt like it was being wrenched from his chest.

He knew it must be worse for the younger boy.

And yet Kyoya couldn't even make eye contact with him.

Couldn't offer any moral support.

He had looked away.

Ignored Kaoru.

* * *

><p>Kaoru stood just off of the stage, fuming. His heart was pounding, not due to stage fright, but due to the raw anger he felt.<p>

There wasn't even space for words in his mind. No questions. Just anger.

He got his cue, and he walked onto the stage, glaring at his sempai. Luckily, 'Kaori' was meant to be in a foul mood.

He was running on autopilot, his lines coming out fluidly.

Mori faltered only for a second; briefly confused as to why he was acting with the wrong twin, but as realisation hit him, worry crept into his eyes, although he carried on as before.

This all happened unbeknownst to Kaoru, who was too blinded by his rage to notice the faint changes in the older boy's characteristically emotionless face.

The time drew nearer, and both knew it.

As did the audience.

The tension in the air could be cut with a knife.

10 more lines. The fangirls sucked in the air from their surroundings.

8. A trickle of sweat made its way down Kaoru's cheek, the stage lights too hot for comfort.

6. Mori loosened his collar slightly, his cravat becoming all too tight.

4. Both boys moved in closer.

2. Everything went still.

1... The fangirls got ready to fangirl.

…

Their lips came closer.

3 centimetres away…

…then 2…

…1…

* * *

><p>The hall erupted into a sea of applause, many fangirls screaming crying/ other generally happy noises.

The cast took a bow.

Many of them bemused at the developments.

How had **_that_** happened?

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** I'm sorry :/ I'm still so ill- I couldn't make this any longer… Hopefully next time, you'll get some good stuff, but I can make no promises… ;_;


	19. Revelation

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ouran high school host club.

**Chapter 19: Revelation.**

* * *

><p>A tall, handsome man wearing a white coat and a stethoscope wrapped around his neck opened the hospital room door.<p>

"Oh good god, it's you again."

Dr. Sugimoto hadn't been told who his patient was. And now he knew why. He shivered at his memory of what had happened last time. He hadn't been fired last time as he had feared, due to Kyoya putting in a good word for him, but the doctor didn't know how he would be punished if something like that were to happen again.

Hikaru looked up and rolled his eyes. Right now, he wasn't all too pleased at being mistaken for his twin.

"I'm **Hikaru** Hitachiin, actually."

Dr. Sugimoto frowned. "…and?"

"My twin, **Kaoru** was the one that got hit on the head."

"Oh." He vaguely remembered this twin, the one that had threatened and almost punched him. He scratched his cheek.

There was a silence.

"So are you going to tell me?" Hikaru asked, only vaguely frustrated.

"Tell you? What?"

Hikaru rolled his eyes again. "You're a doctor. I'm a patient. What else would I want to ask you? How to improve my English essay?"

"Oh. You've sprained your ankle. No need for surgery, but the swelling and pain will take about a month to subside enough for you to walk properly. Another month after that and you'll be able to put a bit more weight onto it. Your ankle helps support your body weight. It needs time to heal and strengthen itself. Rushing it could only sprain it again, so you can't walk on it for a while. I recommend doing light exercises once the pain is gone. Rotating your ankle slowly and things like that. But don't overdo it, and don't keep it in one position too long otherwise, your ankle muscles might heal tight in that position and you might lose range of motion."

The sudden influx of information blew straight over Hikaru's head. "Uh…"

The doctor sighed again. "You'll be given an information pack later. But for now, just rest."

"Right…" Hikaru said, unsure. All he had been able to pick up from the doctor's speech was that it was going to take _months_ to heal.

The doctor noticed how different the boy was to how he had been only a couple of weeks ago. He checked his watch and sighed. _I guess I won't go drinking tonight_. He thought as he sat down on the edge of Hikaru's bed.

Hikaru glared at him. "What?"

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing."

"Nothing?"

"Nothing."

The doctor sighed for what must have been the hundredth time that hour. He leant back and stared at the ceiling. "I'm a doctor. You can tell me anything. I may not be a shrink, but I have patient doctor confidentiality."

Hikaru softened his glare to a stare, then he dropped his eyes to the man's left hand. "You married?"

"No." The doctor lifted the hand and stared at his empty ring finger.

"Girlfriend?"

"No."

"…boyfriend?"

"Good god no. I'm as straight as a rod."

"Hmm…" Hikaru lay back on his pillows and shifted his gaze to the ceiling. "Have you…"

"Have I…?"

"…what does…"

"…does?"

"What does love feel like?"

The doctor snorted, then looked to see if the boy was serious. Judging by the now pissed look on his face, he was. "Sorry… sorry. It's… I haven't exactly had the best love life…"

"Forget it then." He scowled.

"No, no. You can still tell me what's wrong… maybe my past experiences can help you." He laughed.

"Hmm."

"You can start anytime…" He checked his watch, but this time more jokily.

"Hmm… Someone… confessed to me."

"Oh yeah? What's she like? Got good boobs?"

Hikaru shot him a glare. "He."

"Huh?"

"It was a he. A male."

"Oh. Sorry. What's he like? Got a big-"

"Don't even… go there." Hikaru interjected before the doctor could dig himself a bigger hole.

"Sorry. Carry on."

"They… he said… that he… lo-loves me."

"That's what usually happens in a confession." The doctor scratched his neck absent-mindedly.

"Yeah, but it didn't start off with the confession."

The doctor frowned. "Huh?"

Hikaru rolled his eyes, gearing himself up. He held up 4 fingers. "He kissed me. Four times."

"And you didn't stop him?"

Hikaru flinched. "He's… well you saw him the other day. The big dude who stopped me from punching your nose in."

"So he forced himself on you?"

"No! Well… uhh…"

"So you're protecting him?"

"Uh…"

"Do you love him?"

"..uh…"

"Well did the kiss feel nice?"

"…"

"Well?"

Hikaru turned a deep shade of red and wondered vaguely why this had turned into an interrogation.

There was a knock at the door, and a nurse slid the door open.

"No visitors yet." Sugimoto said to her, smiling.

"No… uh…" The young-looking nurse got a bit flustered, and held something out. "This… someone left… for..."

Dr. Sugimoto reached up and took it from her, and she practically ran out of the door.

The doctor turned the gift over in his hands and grinned before handing it over to the red haired boy, whose cheeks were still bright red, and his eyes focused on a spot on the floor.

"Apparently, this is for you."

Hikaru looked up, slightly startled. "Me?"

"Yup. Well, my name isn't Hikaru."

Hikaru took it, and his already red cheeks managed to become even darker.

It was a beautiful silver rose with a handwritten note attached.

'To Hikaru,

I hope you're not too hurt.

I love you.

-T'

"T?" Hikaru cocked his head, confused. The only 'T' he knew was… "Tamaki?" He raised an eyebrow.

"Tamaki? As in, Suoh Tamaki?" The doctor frowned. "A love rival?"

Hikaru's eyes widened and his read cheeks suddenly paled.

"Wow. Mr. Popular, huh?"

Realisation dawned on Hikaru. "Takashi… Mori-sempai?" The colour instantly returned to his face, much to Dr. Sugimoto's interest.

"Oh? Pleased are we?"

"P-pl-pleased?" He stuttered.

The doctor raised his eyebrows knowingly, then he stood up, stretching his arms above his head. "Time for a drink, I think."

"Wait, I haven't finished yet…"

"I think you have, and you know it. Now get some rest."

"I'll try.." Hikaru said, still spinning the rose in his hand.

Dr. Sugimoto smiled as he reached the door. "Bye."

"See ya."

Dr. Sugimoto went to slide open the door, when it opened suddenly.

The same young nurse from earlier stood there shaking, looking extremely nervous.

"Ahh nurse, I was just going to find you, would you like to come out with me for a drink?" He laughed.

"Uh… ah… Sugi- Sugimoto- sensei… there… there's a vis- visitor for… Hita- Hitachiin- sama…" She said shakily, not looking up.

The doctor frowned. "I told you, no visitors today, he needs some rest."

The nurse looked up, frightened. "No, but, uhh.. it's… O-Ohh…"

"Ohh?"

"Ootori-sama!" She cried desperately. This was her first day on the job, and she already had a crush on the tall, handsome doctor, and was made to be the runner girl between the two highest authorities she could think of.

Hikaru caught the name 'Ootori' and frowned. _Surely Kyoya should still be at school, supervising the play?_ He looked at the clock. _It shouldn't have even finished yet…_

"Ootori-sama?" A worried look appeared in Dr. Sugimoto's face. "No, but even so, he has to rest…"

"But… but…" The nurse seemed ready to cry. "He's… coming up… now…" She sobbed.

The doctor frowned and sighed. "Okay. Thank you for telling me, miss nurse. You did a good job." He smiled a kind smile, which instantly stopped the girl's tears.

"O…Okay…" She smiled, and then bounded off, down the corridor.

Sugimoto fixed his white lab coat, and brushed his hair into place using his fingers. Then he walked over to Hikaru's bed, and fiddled with some machine, trying to look serious and professional.

Soon after, there was the sound of sure footsteps coming down the hallway.

Then the door opened.

_Ootori Yoshio? Not Kyoya, but his papa? _Hikaru thought_. _But somehow, it came out as: "Yoshi-kyo-papa?"

Only the ticking of the clock could be heard as all three in the room froze.

"Yoshi… Kyo… papa?" Yoshio repeated.

"Ah…" Hikaru bit his lip. He knew he was in deep shit.

Yoshio's face remained its usual, passive self, but if his frown could, it would've gotten deeper. "I would be extremely grateful if you wouldn't call me that."

"Uh… yeah… sorry, Ootori-sama" Hikaru squeaked.

Yoshio nodded slightly, then turned to the doctor who was still frozen in place. "Sugimoto-san. Would you mind leaving us in peace?" He asked.

"Ah. Uh. But Hitachiin-san needs…"

"Needs?"

Sugimoto broke under the pressure of his boss' stare. "Okay, well I'll just be outside if you need me." He gave Hikaru a small, apologetic smile and then ran from the room, much to Hikaru's annoyance.

"So. Hikaru." Yoshio said in a deep voice.

"Yes?"

"First and foremost, I would like to formally apologize for causing your injury. I had meant for my man to break it, as that takes less time to heal, but he seems to have made a mistake."

"Oh… sorry…" For some reason, Yoshio's tone made Hikaru want to apologize. "Wait, what? 'Causing' my injury?"

"Yes. I did warn Kyoya, but-"

"WARNED KYOYA OF WHAT?"

"That if he didn't… 'break up' with you, I would hurt you."

"Break up with? Me… and Kyoya?" He literally snorted out his laughter. For not the first time in his life, he was annoyed at being mistaken for his twin, which gave him the confidence to return to his usual self. "Nahh, mate you've got the wrong twin." He said snidely.

"The wrong… twin?" Yoshio said, ignoring the tone. "But on the phone Kyoya said 'Hikaru Hitachiin'…"

Hikaru frowned. "Did he say anything else in that phone call?"

Yoshio looked up, trying to remember. "'His name is… Hikaru Hitachiin! Get down from ther-'"

The cogs in Hikaru's brain slowly clicked into place. "Ooooooh… it was _that_ time…" He smiled fondly at the memory. A couple of seconds passed as he reminisced.

Yoshio coughed into his fist, jolting Hikaru back to the present. He gave the boy a look as curious a look as he could without breaking his frown.

"Oh… I was playing around in Kyoya and Kaoru's 'lovey-… in a room, and he told me off, so I snatched his phone… he got really pissed at me." Hikaru grinned. Then the cogs clicked again. "Oh… you were on the phone… no wonder he was being so serious…" He raised his eyebrows in an 'ah well' fashion.

Yoshio's mouth hung very slightly agape. "I… messed up?"

Hikaru shrugged. "I guess so."

"Then where is… Kaoru Hitachiin?"

"He's back at the theatre, replacing me in the…" as he remembered, he flinched.

_Kaoru is going to kiss Mori-sempai. _Hikaru thought.

_Kaoru is going to kiss another man, and Mori is going to…_

In a second's panic, he wondered if Mori would even notice that it was the wrong twin. But the thought quickly left his mind_. Of course he will. He's Mori. He knows everything._

Then he paused.

_I was injured 20 minutes ago. And yet a rose with his handwriting on arrives here soon after I do?_

Apparently, Mori even seemed to know when he was going to be injured.

5 centimeters.

4.

3.

2.

1.

As they went in for the kiss, Hunny, as instructed, dimmed the lights, until the stage was pitch black.

Mori sent the text he had been told to prepare, then moved off of the stage.

Kaoru looked around but could see nothing.

This was definitely not in the script.

He wished things would go to plan and be gotten over with.

Suddenly, there was a familiar sensation on his lips.

Two hands, not too cold but not too warm cupped his cheeks, and the lights suddenly turned on.

It took his eyes a long second before they adjusted to the brightness.

Kissing him was a tall, dark haired boy.

A tall, dark haired boy who most definitely wasn't Mori-sempai.

He was wearing the same style of clothes that Mori had been wearing, and he had taken off his glasses, but Mori it was not.

Instead, it was Kyoya.

There was silence for a couple of seconds as the fangirls took in the sight.

Then there was a flash.

Then an eruption of flashes, as every fangirl took out her smartphone and took a picture.

And they had plenty of time, because Kyoya didn't seem to want to pull away.

And Kaoru wasn't about to either.

He may've been angry, but in this case, actions certainly spoke louder than words.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** Yeah… it's Valentine's day. That's why this chapter is so late… Yep. Not because I procrastinate/ forgot. /shot

..IT IS STILL VALENTINES DAY FOR… A COUPLE OF MINUTES IN THE UK…

I get information from google, so if any facts are wrong, feel free to let me know :3


	20. Respecting your elders

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ouran high school host club.

**Chapter 20: Respecting your elders**

* * *

><p>Yoshio's mouth hung very slightly agape. "I… messed up?"<p>

Hikaru shrugged. "I guess so."

"Then where is… Kaoru Hitachiin?"

"He's back at the theatre, replacing me in the…" as he remembered, he flinched.

"The play?"

There was a moment's pause as the boy went through a variant of emotions. Sadness, concern, panic and relief, then a slight pause, then confusion, and possible enlightenment.

"No…fucking… way…" Hikaru growled.

Yoshio raised an eyebrow, turning his head slightly.

"He…fucking…knew it was going to happen…"

He growled again as he remembered what Mori had said to him that day when he had gone to ask about the kiss.

* * *

><p>His eyes widened as he was rooted to the spot.<p>

Less than five centimetres away from his face was Mori's.

He could feel the older boy's warm breath against his face.

"Shhh." Mori whispered, pushing him to the floor.

"Hah? Ha? Wha-Wha-Mo-Mori-" Hikaru felt his eyes widen even further. _Shit shit shit shit shit. Rape? Is this Mori's secret? He's a rapist?_

"Shh." Mori's tone was brisk.

He was laying completely on top of the younger boy now, his arms and legs to either side of the smaller body to keep the weigh off of him.

His face seemed to remain impartial, his eyes staring at something in the corner.

Then suddenly, he jumped up, pulling the other boy with him.

Dazed and confused, Hikaru let himself be hoisted up and away. Anything was better than sexual assault at the moment.

He frowned as he was put down in another room.

As far as he could tell, it was a bedroom.

It was Japanese-style unlike his own, so the floor was tatami, the walls not walls but paper doors leading to other rooms and cupboards. He could tell it was a bedroom though because of the framed photos on the desk. Many of them were photographs of when Mori was younger- him with a grinning Hunny and Satoshi and an annoyed Yasuchika, but some of them were recent, featuring various host-club cosplays.

And although there wasn't a futon around, it seemed like a well-used room. There was a small table by the window, a couple of cushions laid out and ready for use- perfect for an afternoon tea with a certain hyper cousin.

Hikaru's eyes slowly went back to Mori who was pulling out cushions for them to sit on. He was offered a seat and he gladly took it, although he was still nervous enough to recoil like a spring at the first sign of movement from the other boy.

However Mori didn't seem to feel any of the awkwardness that he did- the taller boy sitting cross-legged, back slightly arched. His serene face seemed wise and much older than his years.

Both sat in silence, Hikaru too frightened to speak in case they repeated the 'fish incident'.

All of a sudden, Hikaru realised that his original question still hadn't been answered. Who was he to assume that Mori had kissed him out of bad-will, and that the situation he was in- sitting dubiously close and alone with the older boy, in his bedroom in an eerily quiet house- was a bad one?

He shook his head, took a deep breath and then met Mori's eyes. "Will you answer my question now? Why did you kiss me?"

"I'm sorry."

"For what?"

"I wanted to protect you."

"Protect me? From who?"

"From… being hurt."

"Being hurt? D'ya mean me being teased by Kyoya and Kaoru?"

"No…"

"…then?"

"It's complicated… I'm sorry."

"For what?" Hikaru could sense that this conversation was going to go around in circles. "Just tell me for goodness sake!"

"It's my fault…"

"What is?"

"I didn't want to see you hurt."

"I don't understand, sempai." Hikaru frowned. It didn't seem as if his voice was getting through to the older boy.

"And… I was selfish."

"Selfish?" Hikaru struggled to think of a time when Mori had acted selfish in any way, shape, or form.

"Selfish." Mori repeated. He seemed to go through some sort of inner turmoil, before something gave in. "I…"

Hikaru stayed silent, willing the older boy on.

"I…" Mori made a concerned face as he leant in again. "I'm sorry." He said to Hikaru as his forehead touched the younger's.

* * *

><p>Yoshio bit his lip, then smiled slightly. "Well I must excuse myself now."<p>

Hikaru looked up, his anger induced daze breaking quick enough to catch a glimpse of an evil smile playing on the black-haired man's lips. His eyes reduced to slits as he stared sceptically at the old man. "Why so happy, Ootori-san?"

Yoshio paused and looked over his shoulder. "I just realised that my plan has worked better then I could've imagined."

Hikaru frowned. "What do you mean?"

"Well… your ankle, although it may take a few months, will heal."

"…and?"

"I'm afraid that my son has become an unsightly thing- publically showing emotions for your brother."

"…" Hikaru scowled at the way the old man had said the words 'your brother' but decided that it was best to keep quiet for now.

"And by kissing another man, Kyoya… well. It takes far more than a month or two to regain trust in someone."

Hikaru's jaw dropped. "WHAT? YOU ACTUALLY SMILE WHEN YOU THINK BADLY OF YOUR OWN SON?" He shouted. "FUCK MANNERS. YOU NEED TO BE SORTED OUT!" He moved to jump out of the bed, but his ankle protested, shooting sharp waves of pain up his leg, making him roar with pain.

The door banged open as Dr. Sugimoto rushed in and took in the scene.

"Hika- Hitachiin-sama!" He cried, running to the bed. "What did I tell you about resting?" He made sure that Hikaru was safely in place before he turned to stare accusingly at his boss. "I'm very sorry sir, but you're going to have to leave now." He growled.

Yoshio sniffed haughtily and went to leave again.

"Wait!" Hikaru shouted again, this time slightly quieter due to the raw feeling now in his throat.

But Yoshio ignored him, reaching the door, and turning the doorknob.

"I said wait!" Hikaru growled. "How the fuck can you say all those fucking things about your own son? You think that that'll make you a good businessman? That it'll make Kyoya one? Well you're wrong. So, fucking wrong. Because Kyoya and Kaoru will surpass you, and they won't stop loving each other as they do it." He fell back against his pillow. "So you can get off your fucking high horse and be happy for them, or die cold and fucking lonely."

His hand still on the doorknob, Yoshio didn't turn around. It was the first time anyone had ever spoken to him like that. He closed his eyes, glad that his back was facing the fuming boy. "I thank you for your… concern, Hikaru Hitachiin."

His tone sent a shiver down Hikaru's spine. But still he didn't regret what he had just said. "Hmm."

Yoshio stepped out of the door. He was about to walk away, but he hesitantly popped his head back around the door. "Thank you, Hikaru. It was about time that someone told me off." And with that, he closed the door and left.

Both Hikaru and Sugimoto stared at the door, slack-jawed.

It took a full minute before either of them could even tear their eyes from the door.

"You… just… slagged off… one of the most powerful men… in the world…" the doctor began.

"….and he said… 'thank you'…" Hikaru finished.

They looked at one another, but both could only shake their heads in disbelief.

* * *

><p>Yoshio walked out of the hospital and into his awaiting Limo. As he sat in his seat, his phone buzzed, and he pulled it out.<p>

'Mr. Ootori,

I assume that you've been to visit Hikaru by now.

I would kindly appreciate it if you wouldn't hurt him anymore, unless you would like to lose the business of mine and my fellow host's families.

-Takashi Morinozuka.'

He sighed as he deleted the message. "Children these days… When I was young, I was always taught to respect my elders…" He said to himself.

Then he told the driver their destination- the school.

* * *

><p>Yoshio arrived to the sound of screeching and whooping. He flinched at the sound, but entered the hall anyway. He was asked whether he wanted to be seated in an exclusive box-seat, but he checked his watched and guessed that there was barely 5 minutes of the play remaining anyway, so he declined.<p>

As the main doors were opened for him, he was suddenly plunged into a loud, chaotic, flashing mess of yellow dresses. He was so distracted by not being run over, that he almost didn't look up at the stage.

Almost.

But he did, and his mouth dropped once again at the sight.

On stage, in front of around 500 people, his son was… passionately kissing another man.

This time it was his turn to be frozen in place.

But he didn't walk away.

He didn't call his SPs to stop it.

Instead he stood and waited.

Patiently.

When Kyoya and Kaoru eventually left the stage, they were quickly informed of who was waiting for them in the third music room.

"Kyoya… why is your father here? Do you think he saw-"

"Yes… I'm afraid he most likely did…" Kyoya replied, ignoring the first question.

Kaoru looked up to him, panic-stricken. "But, but, but… what… what does he want?"

"I have a feeling that it's about… your brother."

"Hikaru?" Kaoru's eyes widened as he remembered about his brother. "HIKARU! I have to go see him in the hospital!" He made to run towards the car park, but the older boy caught him by the shoulder.

"Don't worry… Mori-sempai has gone to visit him."

"Mori-sempai?" Kaoru frowned. "Why has sempai…" His eyes widened. "ARE THEY-" He looked around sheepishly as people turned to stare as him. "Are they going out?" He whispered to Kyoya.

Kyoya shrugged innocently, but a small, knowing smile appeared on his lips. "Well I know that sempai has had his eyes on your brother for a very long time now."

"No way!" Kaoru said, grinning. "That's so cute!"

Kyoya smiled back. "So… shall we go and see what father wants from us?" He offered the younger boy his hand, which was graciously taken.

Kaoru smiled, then paused. "Don't forget-" he pouted, "that I still haven't forgiven you for earlier. And don't think that that one measly little kiss was enough to satisfy me."

"Yes dear" Kyoya said monotonously, but he ruined the act by chuckling.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** :3 So… some questions were answered, but now there are more!


	21. The silver rose

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ouran high school host club.

**Chapter 21: The silver rose**

* * *

><p>"Hikaru. Are you okay?"<p>

Hikaru had just woken up, and jumped when his hazy eyes found Mori sempai's face right above his, staring down. He nodded vaguely, still collecting himself.

"There are cameras."

"…huh?" "Sorry… what?" He said, wide-eyed and pretty creeped out. He tried pulling himself further up the bed so he didn't feel quite so vulnerable lying down.

"…there are cameras. Hidden in my house."

"….uh… that's…nice?" Hikaru said hesitantly, not really understanding what the hell was going on. He checked the clock beside him. "WOAH! It's 3:45 a.m? Shouldn't you be… in bed? What happened to visitor hours?"

"…Sugimoto sensei let me in when he saw me…"

_Oh god. What if that quack doctor said anything about our discussion…? _Hikaru's cheeks brightened at the thought, and he hastily looked down. "Oh… did he say anything… about me?"

Mori frowned very slightly. "Do you like him?" He asked bluntly, noticing the pink hue on the younger boy's cheeks.

"HA? I'm sorry, but what?"

"…you blushed when I said his name… and he's tall, handsome, dark-haired."

"HA! No!" He snorted at the thought of having that lecherous-looking man as his object of affection. "I'd much prefer to have a small, cute girl than a big, hairy man like hi-"

Too late, he realised what he was saying. "Oh. Fuck. No. I didn't mean that, sempai." He said hastily.

"…"

"I really didn't mean it… I mean… it's just…" For some reason, he started to tear up. He didn't… couldn't look up to see what kind of face the older boy was making. "I'm sorry…" He frowned.

"…"

"And…and…" He knew he wasn't the sharpest tool in the drawer, but he knew that his comments… they were… 'mean' didn't even begin to describe it. _Hikaru you thoughtless, reckless, idiotic…_ he shouted at himself inside his head but ran out of intelligent sounding words. _FUCKING SHIT. Oh god, what have I done? _

"…"

As a last resort, he turned his host-club mode on. "…and if I wanted to have a tall, handsome, dark-haired man…" He gulped slightly, turning up his cute-o-meter. "I'd go for you."

Hikaru sniffed shakily as there was no oral sign from the older boy that he had understood. He finally racked up the courage to look up.

And above him was the most adorable face he had ever seen.

Mori's face was lit up like a child's on Christmas day, a mix of eager anticipation, hope and a futile attempt at patience, all completely new emotions to see on the older boy's usually stoic face.

Hikaru frowned again, slightly… no, extremely worried about the older boy's sanity. He smiled, slightly unsure of what to say.

Mori leaned in to kiss him again, but this time Hikaru's hand shot up and he pressed his palm against the older boy's lips. "NO! Not… I'm… uh…"

There was a moment's disappointment in the older boy's eyes, but it was quickly buried under his calm, patient and kind smile.

Hikaru blushed lightly but didn't look away. "I think you need to go to bed now… I need rest. Doctor's orders and all…"

Mori frowned as if returning back to reality. He followed the line of Hikaru's body under the sheets with his eyes until he reached the injured leg. "Hikaru, I'm sorry, it was all my fault."

Hikaru sighed. "This thing again? Don't worry sempai, it's not your fault. I'm not blaming you."

"But the cameras…"

"Oh yeah, you were saying something about cameras before?"

"Renge… has cameras installed in our house… Kyoya and Kaoru told me that they were sent a photograph of me kissing you…" He bit his lip. "Then… you were sad and angry and… then you came to my house again…"

Hikaru frowned… then his eyes widened. "DOESN'T THAT MEAN THEY HAVE PICTURES OF YOU ONTOP OF ME?"

Mori shook his head slowly. "It's an automatically rotating camera that turns on when it senses movement. I was waiting for it to pass us before I pushed you down. Then I had to wait again until it thought that we were gone."

"…right? And? Why couldn't you tell me that?"

"…because you were in my room… and I wanted to kiss you again."

Hikaru fought the urge to punch the boy. He struggled. "…Right? And?"

"…so I did. Because I love you."

The younger boy frowned as he remembered what happened in the room.

"And… I was selfish."

"Selfish?" Hikaru struggled to think of a time when Mori had acted selfish in any way, shape, or form.

"Selfish." Mori repeated. He seemed to go through some sort of inner turmoil, before something gave in. "I…"

Hikaru stayed silent, willing the older boy on.

"I…" Mori made a concerned face as he leant in again. "I'm sorry." He said to Hikaru as his forehead touched the younger's.

He briefly kissed Hikaru on the lips then on his cheek. "My answer… is that I love you."

Hikaru's eyes widened to the size of saucers and his heart thumped furiously in his chest. A billion thoughts rushed through his head, most of them escape plans. "Uhh.. I… a… I…"

Mori pulled back suddenly. "But… I've been selfish. I have to go now." He opened the door. "I'm sorry I couldn't offer you tea." And with that, he left.

* * *

><p>Hikaru frowned again, staring above Mori's head to the white hospital wall. "So… what did you mean when you said you were being 'selfish'?"<p>

"Kyoya… his father has been blackmailing me."

Hikaru's eyes turned back to face the older boy. "…what?"

"His father… Ootori-sama… he wanted me to kiss you."

Hikaru's jaw dropped. "…what?"

"…or he would close down our dojo."

"WHAT? IS THAT WHY YOU… Why you…" He looked down at his bed sheet, gripping onto it as if to ground himself. "...is that why you kissed me?" He couldn't decide if he were angrier at Yoshio for being such a bastard, or at the possibility that his first kiss was because of a stupid dojo.

Mori shook his head. "No, Hikaru. I've loved you since… I first saw you."

"But that's only… three years or something. I've barely even spoken to you before." He spat, wanting to believe, but not trusting anything anymore.

But Mori shook his head again. "The first time I saw you. When you were 6."

"SIX? …what… what are you talking about? We only met when the host club started!"

"I first saw you at one of your family's parties. I thought you were…" He blushed and looked slightly to the side. "I thought you were… the prettiest girl I'd ever seen."

"P-prettiest… GIRL?"

"…yes… you were wearing pink… and had a pink wig on… Kaoru was next to you wearing blue."

"Wh-what…" His eyes alone showed raw panic. "You… how…"

"I was told that you were Hikaru Hitachiin… I told my mother that I'd marry you when I was older."

Hikaru's jaw dropped. He could just imagine an 8-year-old Mori offering a flower to a pink haired little girl. He couldn't think whether that was what happened or if he had made it up… he tried to replay the scene, zooming into it a bit. _Handsome little boy… offers a rose to cute little girl… it's a weird rose… it's a si-_

"I stole a silver rose from a table decoration and gave it to you at the party…" Mori said, scratching his cheek. "But then I ran back to Mitsukuni before I could say anything."

"A…silver… rose…" Hikaru turned to his bedside table where a single, silver rose stood in a vase.

"Haha… I thought… you might've remembered." Mori said, slightly embarrassed.

"I… I actually did." Hikaru shook his head, laughing. "I actually do."

"You remember that?" Mori's eyes lit up again.

And then Hikaru was engulfed into a hug. A big, warm, and strangely fluffy hug.

A big, warm, strangely fluffy and awkwardly long hug.

The first few seconds were actually quite comfortable. _I could… get used to this…_ Hikaru thought to himself, unnervingly at ease with the situation.

But as the seconds rolled into a minute, Hikaru frowned. "Uhh… sempai? Want to get off of me now?"

He was greeted with silence and his eye twitched. "Sempai?" He said loudly, not caring about his manners anymore. He poked the older boy hard in the ribs. "SEMPAAII?"

He rolled his eyes. Apparently, Mori-sempai was a surprisingly clingy man like Kyoya was with Kaoru. Not that he didn't like… being close and cuddly with someone… but still. This was…

A sudden thought dawned on him.

He lightly tilted the older boy's head towards him.

Then he let out a shaky laugh. "He's… actually adorable when he's asleep…" Hikaru smiled as he conjured up pictures of Mori as a sleeping Dormouse.

As he smiled again, he noticed that Mori hadn't even changed out of his costume yet. It was a beautiful outfit; a perfect design by his brother which suited the black-haired boy to a T. Mori had taken off his black, silver-buttoned tailcoat and laid it across the back of the visitor's chair, but his ruffle-collared shirt was proof enough of Gregorian era dress. Hikaru noticed that the top button of the shirt was dangerously close to strangling the older boy, so, unthinkingly, he slipped it undone. Then he undid the next one just in case.

…Then the next one.

…Then he stopped.

He took in a deep breath, fingers trembling as he clenched and unclenched his fists.

He ran his fingers through his fiery hair, then scratched his cheek, his eyes never leaving the older boy resting in his lap.

He finally let out his breath as a sigh, and he smiled. "G'night sempai…" He said, resting his left hand on the silky black hair.

His lids suddenly felt heavy and he fell asleep almost instantly.

Mori opened one eye and grinned. "Good night Hikaru" He whispered. Mori knew how to get his way.

* * *

><p>Kyoya opened the door normally, not violently, not timidly, not wanting to show any emotion. Apart from love. He held Kaoru's hand tightly to keep him close. As soon as the door opened, they saw the man reclining on one of the sofas. Yoshio turned his head slightly, his eyes going from Kyoya's face to their connected hands, back to the window.<p>

Kyoya sighed, not expecting much to go well in the next couple of minutes. Feeling his nervousness, Kaoru squeezed his hand reassuringly. The older boy smiled down at the younger as a thanks, and they moved into the room, shutting the door behind them.

"Father?"

Yoshio grunted in recognition, then indicated the sofa opposite him.

Kyoya and Kaoru strode towards the sofa and sat down together purposely close.

"Kyoya…" He paused, looking at his son, before turning to the redhead. "Mr. Hitachiin."

Kaoru gulped slightly. "K-Kaoru is fine."

Yoshio nodded slightly. It seemed that this one was a lot more timid that the other. He turned back to his son.

"Takashi Morinozuka has just sent me the most delightful message."

Kyoya gritted his teeth.

Kaoru looked up to Kyoya. "What kind of message?" Then he looked back at Ootori the older.

Yoshio raised an eyebrow at the younger boy. So he wasn't in on the plan? He took out his phone and adjusted his glasses slightly. "'Mr. Ootori,

I assume that you've been to visit Hikaru by now.

I would kindly appreciate it if you wouldn't hurt him anymore, unless you would like to lose the business of mine and my fellow host's families.

-Takashi Morinozuka.'" He read.

Kaoru's mouth opened a little. "Wow. Blunt as always, I guess. Ne, Kyo~" He said, looking back at Kyoya. He noticed that Kyoya was frowning. "Kyo~? Kyoya? What's wrong?"

Kyoya didn't turn to the other boy. "What about it." He asked his father.

Yoshio smiled slightly. "I also went to see Hikaru Hitachiin at the hospital."

Kaoru bristled slightly at being ignored. "Hikaru?" What has he got to do with anything? I'm so confused. He thought, but not wanting to sound whiny in front of the scary man.

"Your brother… told me off."

Kaoru's eyes widened. "Told… you off?"

"Yes. It was a… well It was certainly an intriguing experience."

"'Intriguing experience'?" Kyoya and Kaoru echoed in union.

"Yes… what was it he said? Oh yes. 'Kyoya and Kaoru will surpass you, and they won't stop loving each other as they do it. So you can get off your fucking high horse and be happy for them, or die cold and fucking lonely.' What a delightful boy." Yoshio said, not sarcastic in the slightest.

Kaoru cringed at his brother's words. "That's so like him…" He muttered.

"I'm growing rather fond of him… is there any chance you could-"Yoshio stopped himself short. For the first time in his life, he thought about his son's… feelings.

"…I could… what?" Kyoya asked dubiously, clenching his fist.

"Ah… oh." His lip twitched into the nicest smile he could manage. "No… nevermind."

Kyoya stood up suddenly. He ignored Kaoru's small disgruntled protestations and took a large step towards his father. He pulled the older man up by his collar.

Then he pulled his arm back. He went to punch him.

Yoshio flinched but didn't try to stop him.

But Kyoya's fist stopped, just inches away from his father's face.

"Kyoya!" Kaoru said, surprised, jumping up and going to the older boy's side.

Kyoya dropped the cloth of the shirt, but kept looking down at his father. "You don't know how much I want to punch you right now."

"I do know, Kyoya." Yoshio said, staring right back. "I do know. And I'm sorry."

"You're… you're what?" Kyoya frowned.

"I'm sorry. For what I did to Hikaru-kun."

"What? Why?" Kyoya asked, terrified about the 'kun', and about how the answer was most likely going to be about how his father could now get revenge against Kaoru.

"Because… Because I've been a total… what's that word… 'jerk'."

"Okay. I'm really lost now. Someone please explain to this ignorant fool?" Kaoru piped up.

Both Ootori's turned towards him at the same time.

"Dear father injured your brother because he thought that I was dating him. And he blackmailed Mori-sempai."

Kaoru's jaw dropped. "Injured… blackmailed?"

"But I am sorry. I truly am."

Kaoru turned from father to son, back and forth, back and forth, trying to analyse their emotions. But then he gave up.

"Kyo, I'd say we should just ignore him."

"…but…"

"No buts. If Hikaru's fine, Mori's fine and your father is apologizing, we should just let it go."

"Bu-" He frowned. "…okay…"

Yoshio raised an eyebrow at his son's submissive behaviour. All of his life, Kyoya had strived to be a dominating force, and Yoshio's eye twitched as he remembered the time Kyoya had actually given him back his company. He let out a small laugh, which made both boys turn to him, giving him a questioning look. For both of them it was the first time they had seen Yoshio look genuinely happy.

"What?" Kyoya demanded, still not trusting the man.

Yoshio shook his head, then ruffled the younger boy's red hair. "I think you'll fit in perfectly as an Ootori. Yes. Kaoru Ootori. I like it." He laughed again then walked out of the room.

Kyoya and Kaoru both stared at the door.

"What… was… that?" Kyoya said quietly.

Kaoru put his hand to his head. "I think… your father… just made me your bride…"

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** I'M SO SORRY FOR MISSING A WEEK GUYS ;_; *cry cry* So much school work+ STILL ILL= TT^TT And I have exams and crap coming up too… Waaaaaaaaaaaaaah ;_; I don't wanna have exams :/ But yeah… hopefully I've made up for it with this megalong chapter?

XD I… I didn't know I'd enjoy HikaxMori so much… MoriHika? MOKA? MOHI? HIMO? HIRI? XDD Me will stop it if you no like… but it's growing on meh…


	22. Being an Ootori

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ouran high school host club.

**Chapter 22: Being an Ootori**

* * *

><p>At exactly 09:23 a.m., Kaoru stepped into the hospital. He had come visiting alone, telling Kyoya that he needed some time alone with his brother to talk about 'family issues', despite them both knowing that Kaoru just wanted a brotherly gossip.<p>

He knew exactly which room to go to because it was the same one he had been put in very recently. He walked past the reception desk and through the rows of seats, getting the vague (and nonsensical) feeling that he was being watched. But not hesitating, he got into the lift and pressed the button to the 7th level. There were only 6 rooms on this floor, all for private use of the Ootori's, which made Kaoru feel slightly out of place.

However, that feeling was instantly quashed as he noticed the glint in the eyes of the nurses.

It was the same glint that the fangirls (especially the fujoshi fangirls) used to get during the Hitachiin twincest act.

He internally facepalmed as he remembered Yoshio's words the night before- _"I think you'll fit in perfectly as an Ootori. Yes, Kaoru Ootori."_

Kaoru groaned as a thousand situations rushed through his head, all involving Yoshio giving him a bride's dress. As he reached the door, a murmur of unrest spread around him.

"Oh! Ooto-" The nurse beside her nudged her. "Hitachiin-sama! I'm sorry, but you can't go in there right now…"

"Huh. But Kyoya told me that Dr. Sugimoto had finished his examination for today."

"Oh, um, he has… but…" She looked sheepishly at her friend who hid her face behind the clipboard she was carrying.

Kaoru raised an eyebrow, waiting for an answer, becoming more and more confused by the second.

"But these pretty nurse-chans don't want you to interrupt something so cute." From around the corner, the tall doctor came, his arms crossed and an amused expression on his face.

"'Something so cute?'" Kaoru repeated in question.

Dr. Sugimoto indicated the door to Hikaru's room with a tilt of his head. "Have a quick look, but don't wake 'em up. They were at it until about 4 this morning."

"They… were **at it**?" He was sure that it was Mori the doctor was referring to… Kaoru's eyes widened. "Wha- what? They were... at it?"

The doctor frowned, then he realised the misunderstanding. "No! No no no! Not… **AT IT**… no, uh, they were talking!"

"Talking? Is that what the kids call it nowadays?" Kaoru said, not understanding why the doctor would cover for Hikaru. He opened the door a crack and peeked through. If possible, his eyes widened even further. "No way… They did it in a hospital?"

"What? No, they were actually talking!"

"Hikaru doesn't talk. I'm his twin, I should know. And that certainly does not look like they were 'talking." Kaoru said, indicating the bed.

If Hikaru thought it had been bad when he had walked into Kaoru's Hospital room to see Kyoya beside him holding his hand, this was worse. Much worse.

Hikaru lay sleeping on the hospital bed, looking more at ease than Kaoru had seen him for a long time.

As did Mori. Who was also sleeping. In the same bed. With four buttons undone.

Hikaru was snuggled up against Mori, so close that their foreheads were touching.

Hikaru's hand was resting in Mori's short black hair.

"Th-they were talking!" The last time I checked anyway… The doctor thought.

"Well then obviously Hikaru's dirty mind must have infected me, because what I see before me..."

"No, trust me. Seeing this scene could make anyone think that way…"

"Oh good," Kaoru sighed. "I'd probably die if I thought like Hikaru for any longer."

"But you're twins. Don't you like have that… twin telepathy thing? Or like… think the same?"

Kaoru rolled his eyes. "We 'like' don't 'like' think 'like' the 'like' same. If we did, Hikaru would probably be dead for trying to hit on Kyoya."

The doctor scowled at the younger man for making fun of a habit he'd picked up off of the younger nurses. "Fine. Whatever. But they were talking."

Kaoru face-palmed. "but-"

There was a sudden loud crash and a small, monotonous "ow."

Both at the door turned sharply to see an extremely astonished Hikaru looking down to the floor at a yawning Mori.

"What the… Mori-sempai? WHY THE FUCK WERE YOU IN MY BED?"

Mori stretched his arms above his head, stood up, kissed Hikaru on the cheek, smiled, then picked up his coat and left.

Hikaru's eyes immediately went from staring at Mori's departing back to the pair at the door's stunned faces, and he promptly went a deep shade of scarlet, emphasised greatly by the whiteness of the hospital room.

"Kaoru. Sugimoto-sensei." Hikaru growled at them both, trying to force his red cheeks to become not-quite-so-red but failing miserably.

"Yes?" They both replied.

"This… it's not what it looks like."

Dr. Sugimoto shook his head. "Whatever. As long as you used protection, I don't care."

Kaoru sniggered, deciding that this was more than enough entertainment for him for a day. "As long as it was love not lust big brother!" He grinned and made a heart shape with both hands.

Hikaru turned even redder, his embarrassment mixing with his anger. "IT'S NOT LIKE THAT!"

"Whateeeever you say~" Kaoru said.

"Yep. I totally agree." The Doctor nodded.

Hikaru's eye twitched. "Fine. If you wanna play like that. I heard you're officially Kyoya's bride now, little brother?"

Kaoru rolled his eyes. "News sure does travel fast! How is it that you found that out, huh?"

"When I woke up earlier, the nurse told me!"

"Oh… so you woke up earlier?" Kaoru grinned. "Yet you didn't move Sempai from your bed then, huh?"

"No, but, he… He…" Hikaru tried to remember what had happened that morning, but he struggled, maybe due to the insane amount of painkillers he was taking. And now he couldn't even resort to violence since he had experienced the pain of trying to stand on his ankle. "ARGH I HATE BEING INJURED!"

Kaoru laughed evilly. "Hika and Mori, sitting in a tree. K-I-S-S-I-N-G."

He made to leave, but was stopped by a strong force behind him. "Kaoru! Is your brother okay!"

"Mum!" Both twins said simultaneously.

"Hikaru! Are you okay? Do you hurt?"

"I'm fine."

"Are you sure?"

"Uh… yes?"

"Are you sure you're sure?"

"Yeah?"

"Are you sure you're sure your-"

"YES! What's wrong with you?"

"You're my precious son! Can a mother not visit her son in hospital?"

"You didn't come and visit me." Kaoru said, glad that she didn't if this was what he would've got.

"Oh Kaoru, honey! I'm sorry! But mummy was busy that week!"

Kaoru rolled his eyes. "Whatever. Can I go now?" He asked, checking his watch to find it was already 10. "I'm meeting Kyoya in half an hour."

"Kyoya?" Yuzuha Hitachiin frowned. "Ootori Kyoya?"

"The very same."

"And why're you meeting him?"

"...uh…" One of his eyebrows dipped in disbelief. "We've been going out for about three months?"

"G- going out? You and that Ootori boy?"

"Uh yeah. I thought everyone knew…"

"Oh trust me, they do." Hikaru said, picking up the newspaper from his side table. On the front cover was a large photograph evidently taken last night. Well, evidently for him. To anyone else who wasn't at the play, this was big news.

Kaoru sighed as he remembered feeling as if he was being stared as when he had strode through the hospital. _An Ootori son kissing a Hitachiin son? What scandal._ He thought dryly.

"WELL I DIDN'T KNOW!"

Kaoru stared at his mother, wide eyed. "Uhh , sorry? It wasn't like we were very secretive about it…" _It's a wonder Hikaru kept his mouth shut for this long, to be honest._

"I won't allow it."

The room went silent.

Kaoru's jaw drooped open. "Huh?"

"I will not allow you to date Ootori Kyoya."

"…wha- Of all the people, I didn't think you to be a homophobe…" Kaoru laughed shakily, extremely close to tears.

"I will not allow you to date an Ootori, no matter its gender." Yuzuha said with a stone face.

* * *

><p>Kyoya and Kaoru stood together outside of the Hospital, a week after Hikaru had been discharged from it.<p>

They stood; hand-in hand, amongst their families and the Host club's families as small group, slightly apart from the thousands congregated there. It was sea of black.

All heads bowed. There was a deafening silence, only cut through by the unmistakable sob of mothers, fathers, children, siblings, friends, families, strangers.

A collective lament for the lost.

"It is 14:46. 11th March 2012. Three hundred and sixty six days ago, 15,854 people died. 9,677 people were injured. 3,155 people are still missing.

"We cannot bring them to life. We have healed who we could. We shall find who we can.

And we will remember them."

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** Some of you may know this, but I'm half Japanese on my mother's side. I have a grandmother and aunt who live in Tokyo. On March 11th, 2011, I remember exactly what I was doing because I had cheekily asked my mum for a lift from school, despite it being her birthday. I got into the car slightly grouchy that she had taken about 40 minutes to arrive, and I had been sitting outside in the British weather (hint: it was cold.) When she told me she'd been watching the news, I looked at her, eyebrow raised, and said: "And this is important because…"

I found it startling how, despite being a major disaster; catastrophic, life-taking, life-destroying, my school hadn't given us students any notice at all. I mean, why should they? They can't exactly broadcast every single piece of news (seeing as we don't have a broadcasting device, it would have to be delivered via word of mouth anyway) as it happens, and I understand that.

I guess I was pretty shell shocked. Luckily, my family was away from harm- they still felt the earthquake pretty bad- my aunt had to walk home from the city to her home, but not injured. Not dead.

I've been to visit my family's home plenty of times- the last time was in the summer of 2008. I can remember the smell of every surface, I can visualise every room, I can still feel the summer heat and the coolness of drinking Fanta Grape. I've faced the horrors of Cockroaches, typhoons and jellyfish. And yet I cannot even begin to imagine what it would be like to be in their situation.

There's a museum in England where they have an Earthquake machine. It was a fun thing to play on, not an uncontrollable force.

What do I have to compare it to?

Nothing. And that's what scares me.

"It was the most powerful known earthquake ever to have hit Japan, and one of the five most powerful earthquakes in the world since modern record-keeping began in 1900." I learnt about tectonic plates in Geography last year, and we had to learn about the scales of Earthquakes. Okay, so it was a 9.0 magnitude Earthquake. There were fore and aftershocks of about 7.0. But what does that mean? Yes, 9.0 is a big number. But what does it mean?

"The earthquake triggered powerful tsunami waves that reached heights of up to 40.5 metres" 40.5 meters? I can't visualise that off the top of my head. So let's think about this logically. My dad is about two meters tall. So 20 and a quarter of him. …Even that I struggle think of. Okay, so what is 40.5 meters tall? I have no idea. Can you imagine a 40 meter wall of water surging towards you? No? Neither can I.

Apart from my Japanese grandfather, I've never lost one of my close relatives or friends. I only had vague memories of this grandfather, so when he passed away, although it was unbearably sad to see my mum so sad that she wasn't able to spend his last moments with him, it wasn't life changing.

So I don't know how to feel.

Although I have so many links with Japan, I find it impossible to imagine what it would be like today, or on this day last year.

Therefore although I would've loved to write a heart-wrenching, poetic part to this story, with the theme of the earthquake, I believe I can do it no justice and so I shall leave it like this.

But I will remember all those who lost their lives.

And I will think about all those who've lost somebody in their lives.

X

* * *

><p>And on a less sombre note, I'm sorry this chapter is a bit crap… and it ends on another cliffhanger! But what can you do? Also, to understand most of it, you have to have a pretty dirty mind. Sorry. :P<p> 


	23. Bluntness

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ouran high school host club.

**Chapter 23: Bluntness**

* * *

><p>A petite woman with short red hair sat in a large conference room by herself. One leg crossed over the other, she stared out of the massive window which covered the whole of one wall. It was early in the morning, just gone seven, and there were swarms of people, business men and women rushing for trains or busses, one hand laden with a black briefcase, the other stuffed into a bland coloured coat.<p>

From the height she was at, they looked like ants; she was at the top of one of the biggest buildings in the area, but it didn't take much imagination to guess what the people looked like. _They're all so uncouth…_ she said in her head._ I mean really. Why would you want to blend in with the crowd? If it were me, I'd wear that Channel pencil skirt, match it with our new blouse with the large collar, and then wear the fiery red blazer to add a bit of kapow! _

Her lips turned into a small smile as she imagined herself walking into a commoner's work building with the outfit she'd just designed in her head. _It's perfect! I must write it down somewhere!_ She turned from the window to reach for her bag, but her head went to the door soon after as she heard it click open.

She shot to her feet, rearranging herself into a more official look on the way up. Hands respectfully in her lap*, she bowed then smiled politely at the black-haired man walking in.

"Hitachiin-sama. Thank you for coming."

"No, no, it's a pleasure to meet you properly, Ootori-sama."

The man nodded slightly and then indicated where she had been sitting moments before. "Please, sit down." He said, taking his own seat at the head of the table, three places away from her.

"My sons have told me so much about Kyoya-kun…"She froze in horror. _What honorific should I have used? 'kun' to show friendship or 'san' to show maturity?_ "…or would that be –san now that he's such a grown up?" She tried to laugh lightly in order to hide the panic in her voice.

"Ah, my boy is still a child behind that fiendish glare of his." Yoshio said, not meaning to imply anger, but sounding so anyway.

Yuzuha laughed unnaturally, forcing herself to smile. _Your son isn't the only one with a fiendish glare!_ She cried in her mind. "Yes, isn't it scary how fast children grow up? Ah but I suppose you have previous experience with your three other children."

"Yes, but all three of them grew into fine adults before I even blinked."

"Haha, yes, I can see that! And what brilliant people they are!" _COME ON, GET ON WITH IT. _"Um, sorry for veering off track, but may I ask why you called me here today?"

"Ah yes, I do apologize for keeping you from what must be a busy schedule." He smiled.

"No!" She coughed out, panicking. "No, no, I just don't want to take up too much of your time!"

"Oh don't worry; I wiped my whole day today. I have things that I'd like to plan."

_Plan? He sounds like he's about to try out world domination!_ "Ah, that's… good then." She said meekly.

Yoshio smiled to the best of his ability. "Actually, this plan involves you, Hitachiin-sama."

"Me!" Crap. Crap. Crap. Accessory to murder? Is that how I'll be remembered?

"Haha! Don't sound so surprised. I think it'll be… mutually beneficial for both of us, and our companies."

"Oh… okay…"

Yoshio frowned slightly. "But first I must apologize for something. It's about your son, Hikaru."

_No honorifics, huh._ She raised an eyebrow internally, before the rest of her mind caught up, then spead ahead. Hikaru-Hospitalised-Doctor-Apologizing… DEAD? Her eyes widened to the size of plates.

"I'm sorry to have to say this but…"

"B-but…?"

"Hikaru is…"

"…is…?"

Yoshio's phone started beeping. He took it out and sighed. "I'm truly sorry, I have to take this. It's an emergency." He stood, nodding slightly, and left the room.

_Dead? Hikaru's dead? What… WHY? But… he was only injured last night! They told me it wasn't serious and… and… _Her eyes started tearing up._ No, surely they can't just tell me like this? We just had a perfectly... decent conversation! A pity talk? Is that it? Was he pitying me? Or mocking me? That bastard! He was mocking me for losing a child when he has four in their prime! AND THEN HE JUST LEAVES TO TAKE A CALL? THE FUCKING BASTARD!_

The angry rant in her head was suddenly cut when the door opened once again.

Yoshio smiled, sitting down again. "All is well. Crisis averted. Now where was I…"

Yuzuha stared in horror at the beast of a man. _The fucking bastard_. Her face turned a dangerous shade of red as her anger started to boil over.

"Oh yes. Hikaru." He turned to her and noticed her bright red complexion. "Are you okay? Do you need some air?"

"NO I DON'T NEED SOME AIR." She shrilled. KEEP IT TOGETHER WOMAN. BE CIVIL. HE HAS A PRIVATE ARMY.

Yoshio frowned, worried, before he continued. "I went to visit Hikaru last night to… _tend_ to his injury. I was quite surprised when he gave me a good telling off."

"Hikaru… Did what?"

Yoshio chuckled. "He told me off for being the cold-hearted prick I am."

Yuzuha paled. "So you bumped him off." She said monotonously. _Hikaru you stupid boy! Why did you go and anger the head of the Ootori clan? You can't regret things once you're dead!_

To her surprise, he laughed. "No, no! He's perfectly fine! It was a well-deserved criticism of my child-rearing skills."

Her jaw hung open. "He… he's not dead?"

Yoshio raised an eyebrow quizzically. "No, he's fine and resting… although his ankle will take a couple of months to heal."

"His… ankle…" She repeated, her mind completely emptying of all thoughts but relief.

"Yes. His ankle. Which, I must admit, is entirely my fault."

Yuzuha, returning to the world, laughed shakily. "No, I'm sure it wasn't your fault!" She said, internally kicking herself for reaching hasty decisions before. _That was too close… I almost killed the man. I don't know how much more time I can spend around this man before I go completely insane. _

"No. I did actually cause him to fall. I mistakenly asked my men to injure him. I'm sorry."

"…mistakenly?" She stared at him blankly for a long moment before standing up, picking up her bag and leaving in silence.

It was all she could do to prevent herself from throttling the man.

* * *

><p>"I will not allow you to date Ootori Kyoya."<p>

"…wha- Of all the people, I didn't think you to be a homophobe…" Kaoru laughed shakily, extremely close to tears.

"I will not allow you to date an Ootori, no matter its gender." Yuzuha said with a stone face.

"Bu-" Kaoru was completely speechless. The one thing he thought he wouldn't have to worry about was his mother's acceptance. The scar on his head started pounding and he slid down the wall he had been leaning on until he reached the floor, where he sat sprawled. Tears clouded his vision and he turned his head away so that his mother and brother couldn't see. He heard the door slide open and looked up, hoping to see the prince that had saved him last night.

Sure enough, he saw the raven black hair. "Kyo-!" He started, before he noticed the man's stature and clothing. He bit his lip. "…Ootori-san…" He sighed, relaxing back into his seated position. _Well he'll do, I guess. At least he's on our side._

"Ah, Hitachiin-sama, I thought I might find you here." Yoshio said, addressing the matron. "Although I don't blame you for leaving, I'd like to explain to you about my earlier confession."

Both twins' eyes opened wide. Why the hell did this sound like it was from a cheesy crack fanfiction?

"Uh, context please?" Hikaru said, slightly worried for his own mind.

Yoshio turned to him. "Oh, I do apologize, where were my manners? How are you feeling today, Hikaru?" He said, not really expecting an answer. Then he turned to where he'd heard a voice before. "Ah, Kaoru, I see you're here too. Good."

Both twins nodded slightly, their minds racing.

"What I have to say involves all three of you, so I'm glad I caught you all at the same time."

Kaoru frowned. This didn't seem to bode at all well with him.

Yuzuha made a growling noise in her head, but stayed silent, her patience wearing thin. Noticing this, the Ootori head moved on quickly.

"Hitachiin-sama, as I'm sure you know by now, our sons are… 'Seeing each other'. And although it took me a stern telling off, I have permitted their relationship. And so I'd like to propose the next step."

Yuzuha's eye twitched. "You permitted them did you? And you think that that makes it all okay? 'As long as I've accepted it, we can move on to the next step!' huh."

"Oh, I didn't mean it in that way at all. I simply assumed that, being the more liberal of the two of us, you would've been more tolerant than me with these… things."

"What, so because I'm a fashion designer and not a career-woman, I MUST be more tolerant of gay people? Is that what you're saying? Huh? Huh?"

"Effectively, yes. It is."

Yuzuha frowned. When talking with this man, she found it hard to STAY mad at him. He was an infuriating little bastard, but he was straightforward, blunt, to the point. Qualities she valued. She hated wafflers.

"My proposition to you," Yoshio said, as if the conversation hadn't veered off track, "is to hold a large wedding ceremony for the two of them, effectively linking our two companies, and sons, together, thus removing any reports of 'scandal' and instead replacing it with a 'modern way of thinking'."

* * *

><p>Kyoya's phone vibrated in his pocket.<p>

'_Get the car ready to go. I'm running.'_

Kyoya frowned, but told the driver to start the engine. They had parked not far away from the hospital's entrance so that Kaoru would be able to reach them quickly without having to be out in the March cold for long, and so he could easily see the entrance to the Hospital where he sat.

However he wasn't satisfied with this so he climbed out of the car, shielding his eyes with one hand from the bright sun and holding the car door open with the other.

It didn't take long until the automatic doors slid open with a 'whoosh' and a head of fiery red hair came sprinting out.

Kyoya waved at the boy, who turned and saw him.

Kaoru ran and dived into the car, pulling Kyoya in with him and reaching over to slam the door shut. "Drive!" He said, wheezing slightly. The limo pulled away swiftly, the driver evidently enjoying his new job as the getaway man.

Still laying on top of the older boy, Kaoru panted slightly for a moment, then sighed in relief. He heard a phone vibrating and his eyes opened. "Phone… turn… off…."

Kyoya raised an eyebrow but didn't object, enjoying the fact that the redhead's heat was seeping into him. It was cold after all. He turned off his mobile, and let the younger finally catch his breath before opening his mouth. "So… dare I ask what that was all about?"

Kaoru pouted and snuggled closer, frowning. "I don't like my mother. And the little respect I gained for your father has once again disappeared."

Kyoya rested his hand on top of the boy's head, gently tilting it up so their eyes met. "Are you going to tell me or do I have to guess?"

Kaoru sighed. "Your father has already arranged the date of our wedding, _honey_."

Kyoya laughed. "Come on now, be serious. What really happened?" He said, raising an eyebrow. _As if that could happen. _His laugh cut short when he noticed that Kaoru's cheeky smile hadn't appeared. "Oh god."

"Dearest mother of mine was completely opposed to it."

"So then what's the problem?"

"Hikaru."

"Hikaru?"

"He thought it was a good idea. He convinced my mother. We're to be married on the first of May."

Kyoya pressed his palm to his face. _That meddling twin. Couldn't he keep his nose to himself?_ "The first of May, huh…"

"Uhm, forgive me sir but…"

Kyoya and Kaoru both looked up to see the driver watching them through the rear-view mirror. "What is it, have we arrived?" Kyoya asked, despite knowing that they'd only stopped because of a traffic light.

"Uhm, no… it's just that…" The driver looked away, checking that the lights were still red. Finding them changing to amber, he accelerated. Keeping his eyes on the road, he carried on. "I was just wondering… You seem to love each other very much," he said, the two boys loosening their grips on each other very slightly, both tinging red, "so why are you so opposed to marriage? If you don't mind me asking…" There was a long silence, and the driver sighed. "Forgive me. I spoke out of turn. I shall not turn up for work tomorrow." He said, resigning himself to his fate.

"No. I'll tell you"

The driver looked up at the mirror, surprised.

Kyoya smiled, holding Kaoru tighter. "We're planning world domination, you know."

The driver raised an eyebrow, half believing him. "…right?"

Kaoru laughed at his expression and grinned. "But we're going to do it by ourselves. No Ootori or Hitachiin name in sight."

The driver frowned. "Without? But surely if you want to achieve world domination, you'd take advantage of the fact that those two names alone could get you into higher places than even I could ever imagine?"

"But where would be the fun in that?" Kyoya said, his glasses reflecting the light dangerously, sending a shiver down the driver's spine.

"Okay… so why so against the marriage?"

"Oh, we're not against marriage. We just don't want it so soon. We're not even 17 yet."

The driver frowned, then chuckled lightly. "I have to say, you're much more mature than me… I wanted to run off with my girlfriend when I was 16! I'd just received a large sum of money and promised her a white wedding in a massive English castle, Princess-style."

Both boys laughed. "So? What happened?" Kaoru said, leaning forwards.

"She hit me on the head and told me that I wasn't being practical. Said she didn't want a princess marriage and that I should save the money."

"Oh." Kaoru said, slightly disappointed that it wasn't quite a romantic as he'd hoped.

Seeing this, the driver smiled. "But look at me now! 63 years old and still married to the same woman. She was right y'know. If I'd gone and bought her that wedding, how would I've fed and housed my three kids, and splurged on my little grandkids?" He grinned. "And I wouldn't have got this job, either. And then I would never have met you two in person and probably would've been joining in on the gossip about you." He laughed, pointing at the newspaper in the passenger seat, which showed them kissing.

Both boys flushed again, but this time kept close and smiled back.

"Alright kids, here we are." The driver said, pulling up in front of the restaurant the boys had chosen to dine at. He got out of the driving seat and opened the door for them.

As they stepped out together, Kyoya smiled evilly. "Kaoru, go and tell the waiter that we've arrived. I need to talk to the driver in private."

Kaoru rolled his eyes and sighed, but couldn't be bothered to question the older boy now, so he walked into the restaurant to do as he'd been told.

Once he'd made sure that Kaoru had departed, Kyoya held out his hand in front of the driver, who stared at it inquisitively. Then the driver shrugged and pulled a phone from his pocket, placing it in Kyoya's hand.

"Thank you." Kyoya said, lifting it to his ear. "Hello?" He said, the line still connected.

Kyoya heard the person on the other side of the line sigh. Or people… it sounded as if there were multiple people listening in, telling each other to shut up.

"So. Who are you, and why've you been listening to our private conversation?"

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** :3 Hope you enjoyed~

*hands in her lap- I think there's a big misconception about Japanese people bowing in Japan… about how they press their hands together like they're praying? Although I'm not 100% sure, I've never seen anyone in Japan ever do that. Instead, you bow at the waist with a straight back, and a bigger angle the more sincere you are… men with their hands at their sides and women with their hands together on their thighs with their fingers touching.


	24. Listening in

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ouran high school host club.

**Chapter 24: Listening in.**

* * *

><p>"So. Who are you, and why've you been listening to our private conversation?"<p>

There was a chorus of "HANG UP!"s as the group of people on the other end of the line fought for possession of the mobile. It didn't matter if they did though… If the people on the other side of the line knew him well enough, they'd know that if they hung up, it would only add to Kyoya's anger, therefore increasing the punishment when they were, because they would be, caught.

Kyoya frowned. He had assumed that it was his father and the Hitachiin's mother on the other side, judging by what had recently happened and by the fact that the driver had been willing to cooperate in the shenanigan, but the childishness of the people on the other end didn't really resemble the two adults he had had in mind.

_But then who- _

"MOTHERRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!"

_Oh. Of course. _ Kyoya pulled the phone away from his ear and kept it at arm's length, ignoring the inane babbling he could hear from the hyperactive blonde on the other side. He only dared to move the devise closer after about a minute.

"AND AND AND AND AND AND, MOTHER? ARE YOU LISTENING? Motherrrrrrrrrrrrrr~~?"

"Yes, Tamaki, what do you want?"

"Why didn't you tell me about your plans~" The Prince whined. "When did we stop being best friends? Is that it? You don't want to be friends anymo-" There was a loud noise like a frying pan being hit across someone's head, followed by a howl of pain.

"Sorry about that, Kyoya-sempai." This time the voice was Haruhi's, obviously extremely annoyed. Kyoya was sure he could hear the sound of mechanics roaring and the echoes of a maddened laugh. "There were some problems with Tamak- No! Renge-san, get awa-" Haruhi's cries of horror died into the distance.

Thoroughly confused and worried, Kyoya could do little but keep the phone pressed to his ear.

"Ahem. Hello Kyoya-san!" A chirpy Renge said. "I hope you don't mind us listening, it's just I had to make plans you see. Doujinshi's, commemorative wedding plates and 'dress up' dolls have to be ordered at least a month before the event, and recently you haven't been quite as…" She paused as if trying to think of the right word. "…motivated… by money as you had been before. So I decided to take it in my own hands!"

Kyoya's eye twitched, a familiar purple aura starting to spill around him. "Right?" He said with a voice that could freeze hell four times over.

There was a sudden silence on the other side of the line as Renge's laughter suddenly stopped. "Um." She squeaked, and then the line went dead.

Kyoya raised an eyebrow at the driver, returning the phone. "Thank you very much."

The driver smiled. "You're very welcome." He said cockily.

"I'm sure I'll be seeing you around." Kyoya said, starting to walk off. He probably couldn't fire the man if he'd wanted to- especially since a Suoh was apparent hirer.

"I'll be here for you in two hours, Ootori-sama."

Kyoya raised a hand as he walked away as a half-arsed goodbye.

"Oh, and Ootori-sama?"

Kyoya turned his head slightly. "I was telling the truth earlier. I really think you're being mature, no matter what I've been told to tell yo-" He paused and his face fell.

Now Kyoya turned to face the driver full-on. "What you're been told to tell me?" Neither Tamaki, Haruhi nor Renge had mentioned the driver or instructions to him.

The driver blanched and stood stock-still, his gloved fists clenched.

Kyoya took one step towards the older man, when suddenly there was a sneeze from inside the driver's suit jacket pocket. His hand instinctively went to the pocket, trying to cover it, but this action made him look ten times more suspicious than he had been before.

"What," Kyoya said, frowning and taking another step forward, "was that?" He looked around the basically deserted street, making sure it wasn't him hearing things. Sure it wasn't, he took a third and final step, closing the gap between them.

The inside of the driver's head was utter turmoil. _Should I tell? Should I not? What should I do? Crap. Damn!_ There was a cough from inside his pocket. _What? What? Is someone ill? Is it a subtle signal to tell me to give him the phone? _

Seeing the old man's confusion, Kyoya smirked. He liked to see people getting what they deserved. Especially it meant seeing someone squirm.

"Give it." Kyoya said, eyes sparkling like a Panther before its prey.

The driver gulped. He didn't have much of a choice- be killed now or in a couple of hours' time. He sighed dejectedly, reaching a hand into the pocket and pulling out his second phone.

Kyoya grinned and lifted the phone to his ear. "Hello!"

"Good morning, Kyoya." Came a gruff voice.

"Ah, I've been expecting you. Good morning, father."

The elder Ootori 'hmm'd. "Kyoya."

The younger's eye twitched, all humour leeched from his face. "Father."

There was a long pause of silence which Kyoya didn't want to break. Any second he expected his father's condescending speech about how he should be listening to his elders, that he shouldn't be complaining or fighting back and that he should be grateful to have such a great father who would even organise his (gay) son's marriage.

"Pfft."

Kyoya's eye twitched. That most definitely wasn't a sound he was used to hearing his father making. "Did you just… laugh?"

"…hehe"

"'Hehe'?" What- That was still his father's voice. His father was… making sounds that sounded explicitly like laughter. "Are you…. Laughing at me?" Kyoya said, feeling his cheeks brighten. This was an extremely new sensation. He had never been ridiculed like this before, and he didn't know the reason behind it. "Father?" He said, almost pleadingly over the almost giggly tone.

"Ah, sorry, Kyoya!" Yoshio said sincerely. "It's just… you have such major mood swings! Sometimes you're like a wild big cat going in for the attack, and then you become like a kitten in front of that Kaoru of yours… Sometimes you're a love struck teen, and then others…" The man's tone sobered up gradually, but was still light-hearted. "you sound like you've planned out the rest of your life with precision that'd put off most."

Kyoya didn't know whether to feel insulted or complimented, shocked or relieved. "…I…" was all he could manage.

"Mrs. Hitachiin and I were talking just now, after you told Kaoru to leave. We think that what's best for our companies…"

Kyoya flinched visibly. "BEST FOR THE COMPANIES? YOU'RE STILL WORRIED ABOUT YOUR GODDAMN COMPANIES?"

"NO! Ky-"

"WHY WON'T YOU LEAVE US ALONE?"

"No, Kyoya! It's"

Kyoya was about to hang up when he felt something tug gently at his elbow. "Kyoya, calm."

Instantly, the older boy did as he was told and relaxed. His shoulders sagged and he breathed in and out slowly before turning to see the familiar face that matched with the familiar voice. "I thought I told you to wait inside."

"Kyoya. Calm down." Kaoru frowned slightly.

"But…"

"No buts. What did they say to make you so mad?"

"…" Kyoya looked away slightly.

Kaoru rolled his eyes and took the mobile phone. "Right. Who are you and what the fuck do you want?"

"Hello Kaoru." Yoshio said after a brief pause.

The younger boy promptly went a deep shade of red. Any confidence he had a second ago completely crumpled. "Uh. Uh, um…"

"Please can you tell Kyoya for me that he's misunderstanding?"

"M-Mi-misunderstanding wh-what?"

Yoshio sighed. "What I was trying to tell him earlier was that we, your and Kyoya's parents, think that what's best for our companies should come second… third… last in importance when deciding your life."

Kaoru clenched his eyes shut. How could this man be so stupid? Of course, he was happy that they weren't trying to force them to do something that they didn't want to do for now… but that was just it. 'For now'… even if it was last on their list of importance, it was still on there, meaning that it was still important for the adults. Of course, Kaoru understood that neither parents could just lose an attitude they'd had for generations; in fact, this sudden change in character already did mystify and scare him.

So it was no wonder why Kyoya was on the verge of mass murder. "You haven't a clue, have you?"

"Pardon?"

"You haven't a clue. You got step one right, then you fell at the second hurdle."

Something in Yoshio's demeanour seemed to change. "Can you go to a private place and make it so that both of you can hear me?"

Kaoru frowned, but he made to move anyway. "C'mon, let's go inside."

Kyoya suddenly looked around as if he had only just noticed where he was. "Ah, yeah. Sure."

Once inside a private room of the restaurant, Kaoru put the phone on Speaker. "Okay." He said gruffly.

Yoshio cleared his throat. "STOP BEING SUCH BRATS!"

Too stunned for words, both stared at the phone, then at each other, wide eyed.

"You think you're being so mature? You have your own life plan? That's good. Great. But listen to me when I tell you that you're still kids! You're no different from little girls saying that they want to be Princesses'. And if you hadn't noticed, both of your years combined doesn't even equal the amount of years I've spent gaining experience of one kind or another. So stop being such little children and listen to us!"

"Buh-But…"

"NO BUTS."

Kyoya snarled, banging his fist on the table. "What part of 'WE DON'T WANT YOUR HELP' do you not understand!"

Yoshio sighed, then there was the muffled sound of a voice in the background.

"Kaoru?" Came a meek voice.

"Hikaru? Are you okay?" The redhead said, clutching the table and leaning in.

This time it was Hikaru's turn to clear his throat. "JUST FUCKING GET FUCKING MARRIED SO YOU CAN FUCKING HAVE SEX OR SOMETHING."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Subtle eh?**

XD It's kinda cool that it's Chapter 24 this week… because it was my birthday on the 24th :3

For my birthday I got a Drawing Tablet and the Assassin's Creed games. Therefore I think it's likely that I'll never do homework ever again. Yay for not having a life.

So, until next time~!


	25. Waistcoat

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ouran high school host club.

**Chapter 25: Waistcoat**

"Tamaki."

"Yes, Mother?"

"You do understand that this was to be a date?"

"Yes, but you've been in such a foul mood since I sat down! You're supposed to be happy!"

They were sitting in a private booth of a fancy restaurant, the black haired Demon King cradling his head in his hand. "Then why did you sit down?"

"But… I wanted to help you!" The Blonde Prince pouted.

"You know how you can help?" Kyoya said, lifting up his head and glaring at the hyper boy.

"How?" Tamaki said excitedly.

"BY GOING AWAY."

Looking sad, Tamaki turned his head so that he was looking melodramatically into the middle-distance. "Buh…but…" He sniffed.

Kyoya rolled his eyes and sighed. "And you can take your melodrama with you." He cast a small, sideways glance over the top of the Blonde head of hair to find Kaoru looking straight back at him. Kyoya sighed again. He wanted to punch the airheaded Prince into the next century. For a brief moment, he allowed himself to imaging the sweet sensation of Tamaki's right cheek impacting against his fist, but he just sighed again.

If only a week ago… no, if only an hour ago, he would've been able to punch the boy without having to think about the consequences of hitting the Suoh heir. He had finally thought that he was free from the restraints, the shackles that were the Ootori name in its entirety. But no. The name had once again reared its ugly head and the problem was, this time he couldn't reject it. Because this time, however disagreeable the words it was saying were, they were too full of truth to deny.

And so he had to sit here, pretending like he didn't want to beat the boy to death.

Kaoru sighed and reached out a hand.

He patted the Blonde tiredly. "Don't worry, Sempai. He's just in a bad mood right now. I'm sure he didn't mean it."

"Kaoru." Kyoya said through clenched teeth. "bad decision."

Kaoru frowned and looked at the raven-haired boy with a confused expression. "What? Why?"

"You'll see." Kyoya sighed.

"I'll see? What?" Kaoru said. He tore his eyes away from the jet black ones to look down slightly. At Tamaki. "Oh. Crap."

Tamaki's eyes had swollen to the size of watermelons; the violet orbs glistening with tears. "Devilish twin~!" He engulfed the small redhead in a massive, snuggly hug. "Mummy's being mean to me~!"

Kyoya squinted at him. His determination not to punch the blonde wavering more than slightly. "Tamaki, get off of him." He growled.

"See~? Mummy didn't even say plea~se!" Tamaki whined, snuggling closer.

"TAMAKI. Get off of him!"

"Mother~!"

"Tamaki!"

"Mother!"

"TAMAKI!"

"STOP IT." Both older teens looked to the younger. "Sempai. Let go of me. I can't breathe."

Tamaki pouted but released his grip, his lower lip trembling and his already big eyes enlarging.

Kyoya caught his eye and raised an eyebrow, grinning like a toddler who'd won his parent's approval over his brother.

Seeing this, Kaoru rolled his eyes. "That meant you too, Kyo. Stop it. Do you really need to bicker like this? Sometimes I wonder which of us is the younger."

Tamiki snickered slightly, causing Kyoya's eye to twitch. "Well at least I'm not the one acting like a puppy and getting attached to the first person who shows kindness to me." He said haughtily, still glaring at the blonde.

"That's certainly not what it seemed like last night." Kaoru instantly replied, before his eye size increased slightly and he coughed awkwardly into his fist. He blamed his brother's influence for that sounding a LOT dirtier than it did in his head, and hoped that no one else thought the same way as him. After a couple of seconds had passed, he looked back up to see that Kyoya's head was turned ever so slightly away. So apparently Kyoya was also suffering from Hikaru-dirty-mind-atitis.

"Ne, ne, why are you both blushing?" Tamaki asked curiously.

Kyoya seemed to choke on something, so Kaoru decided to brave this one. "Uhm… it's…" An inside joke? That would probably just get Tamaki even MORE interested. The one thing about idiots was that you couldn't predict just HOW they would react to even the simplest things. "Uhm…" Suddenly, he caught a flash of something out of the corner of his eye. Something red.

"KAORRRRRUUUU"

All three boys turned towards the source of the mighty bellow, the whole restaurant falling dead silent.

"Hikaru?" Tamaki said timidly, recognising the boy first.

"KAORU! WHY DID YOU HANG UP ON ME!"

"Why the hell are you out of hospital?" Kyoya interjected, standing. "You're not even supposed to be getting out of bed!"

"WHY DID YOU HANG UP ON ME!"

"Hikaru! Calm down!" The younger twin finally said.

Hikaru scowled at them before sitting down in the seat opposite them, propping up his crutches against the table and looking over his shoulder as two more people arrived on the scene. Yuzuha and Yoshio.

"Mother?" Kaoru cried at the same time as Kyoya snarled: "Father."

Both parents nodded at their corresponding child before smiling at the other. Then they both turned to stare at the blonde. "I'm very sorry, Suoh-san, but this is private business. Would you please leave?" Yoshio said, before turning back to his son, assuming (correctly) that Tamaki would leave them instantly, scared out of his mind. "We deemed it appropriate to temporarily allow Hikaru out of the hospital."

"WHAT? He's sprained his ankle! Surely he should at least be in a wheel chair?" Kyoya said, wondering what kind of doctor his father was to be allowing patients out of their beds just hours after they'd been diagnosed.

"I'm fine, Kyoya." Hikaru said pointedly, not looking at the older boy but instead at his brother.

"Fine." Kyoya said dismissively. "I'm sorry for worrying about you." He added, watching Hikaru growl and roll his eyes.

"Why are you here, Hikaru, mother? And Ootori-san too?"

"Although your brother put it rather… crudely… I have to say that I agree with Hikaru's earlier sentiment, Kaoru."

"What earlier sentiment?" Kaoru said hesitantly.

"From when we were talking on the phone." Yoshio replied, his eyes showing no remorse.

There was an awkward pause as Kaoru ran what he was about to say over in his head a couple of times.

"That I should 'fuck' Kyoya?" Kaoru spluttered. All attempts at modesty had failed so far, so now it was time for the blunt method.

"Well if that's what you so wish." Yoshio said, not breaking eye contact.

"But only AFTER your wedding day!" Yuzuha piped.

There was a silence as Kaoru radiated disbelief for a while, only to be broken by a certain twin's laughter. "What do you want now, Hikaru?" Kaoru sighed.

Shaking uncontrollably, Hikaru pointed a finger at Kyoya.

Who was as red as a ripe strawberry and staring determinedly blankly out of the furthest window.

"Oh my! Kyoya-kun, are you alright?" Yuzuha asked, placing her hand on his forehead, checking his temperature against her own.

Somewhere along the line, Kyoya had managed to sit back down, but shocked by the sudden coolness against his forehead, Kyoya recoiled, and in doing so, managed to knock over not only his, but everybody else's complementary drinks. As the six glasses collided with the rich wooden table, there was a great clatter. He winced as icy water splashed all over him and started to drip down his shirt.

Thoroughly rejuvenated, he stared down at himself with disbelief. He was never clumsy. Ever. He was the 'cool' host. He didn't _do_ clumsy. "Today really has NOT been great." He muttered, standing up. "S'cuse me. I'll just go and ask the waiter if they have any towels."

Kaoru made to go with him, but Kyoya held out a hand. "Don't worry, I'll be fine by myself." He whispered, ruffling the younger's hair. Although he felt guilty leaving Kaoru alone in the firing range of the dangerous trio, he really didn't think his mind could withstand being alone with the boy after only one sentence was left whirring around his head. He hurried off, spotting a waiter very soon.

Kaoru huffed and sat back down, not pleased at all by the abandonment. He looked up to see three pairs of glittering eyes staring back at him. He inched back as far as he could in his seat, feeling extremely horrified, vulnerable and all 'round uncomfortable.

"So?" Hikaru asked eagerly.

"So? So what?" Kaoru asked in reply, considerably less eagerly. In fact, not eagerly at all.

"So…" Hikaru grinned, "how far HAVE you got with him?"

Kaoru banged his fist gently on the table. "Is that the ONLY thing you EVER have on your mind? How many times have you asked me already?"

All three of them simply grinned at him with varying degrees of cockiness, humour and pure evilness.

"I'm not telling you!" Kaoru said, exasperated.

"Pity me, I'm disabled?" Hikaru said, pouting pleadingly.

"I'll fucking kick your ankle if you pull out the disability badge on me, brother."

"Oh really now?"

"Just. Fucking. Dare. Me."

"I da-" Hikaru stopped as he was whacked around the head. "Ow!" He yelped, turning to face his attacker. "Oh wow, Kyoya you're looking mighty fine"

"None of the waiters had a spare shirt." Kyoya growled, sitting down. "They only had a waistcoat."

"I'm certainly not complaining." Kaoru said, staring and making no effort to hide it. Kyoya's quite thin body and definitely defined upper body muscles were displayed, the waistcoat too small to be buttoned up, and only serving to hide a very small amount of his front, more a token piece of cloth than being of any actual help.

Kyoya blushed again, trying to pull the scrap of cloth further around his body. "Right. Well. It's been great. Really it has. But can we go now? I'm starting to feel slightly uncomfortable. And although I have to admit that I am mightily handsome, I'd appreciate it if I could keep some of my modesty intact."

"No."

"Father. Please."

"No, Kyoya. You're not escaping this time."

"Escaping? Escaping? I don't understand what you want from us anymore. Only an hour ago, I thought I was going to be on a _date _with Kaoru. And then I'm told that he's my fiancé? And then that all of the plans I've made, all of the work I've put into building up a future for myself that doesn't involve being moulded into the submissive 'third son' you've always wanted me as, have to be completely crushed because, guess what, I have no chance of ever achieving it! So I agreed. I submitted. We agreed. WE submitted." He paused for a breath. "We listened to you after you listened in on us. There is no escaping from you, and you know it! So will you PLEASE just let us have some time ALONE in which we won't be spied on, taunted, teased and generally MADE FUN OF?"

Yoshio grinned. "That's the attitude you need." He stood up, as did Yuzuha who helped up Hikaru. All three of them bowed their heads slightly at the two stunned boys. "Excuse us." He said, before leading the strange party out of the doors.

Only after he was no longer able to see his father anymore did Kyoya slowly turn to face Kaoru. "I think… I think…" He tried clearing his throat, but still no words came out.

Kaoru shrugged, dumbfounded. His hand automatically rose up the back of his head and he rubbed his scar. "What just happened?"

"What, indeed." Kyoya sighed.

"What do we do now?"

"I haven't the faintest."

**A/N:** I'm thinking that I may have to wrap this story up in the near future, because it's getting to the point where I'm constantly struggling to write new chapters…. Hm… I have a couple of ideas of how to continue from here, and I think I have the ending worked out.


	26. A family together

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ouran high school host club.

**Chapter 26: A family together.**

**Warning: May contain spoilers for the last couple of chapters of the manga. Go and read them if you haven't already :)**

* * *

><p>Kyoya and Kaoru stood together outside of the Hospital, a week after Hikaru had been discharged from it.<p>

They stood; hand-in hand, amongst their families and the Host club's families as small group, slightly apart from the thousands congregated there. It was sea of black.

All heads bowed. There was a deafening silence, only cut through by the unmistakable sob of mothers, fathers, children, siblings, friends, families, strangers.

A collective lament for the lost.

"It is 14:46. 11th March 2012. Three hundred and sixty six days ago, 15,854 people died. 9,677 people were injured. 3,155 people are still missing.

"We cannot bring them to life. We have healed who we could. We shall find who we can.

And we will remember them."

* * *

><p>After the service had finished, the Host Club stood, slightly awkwardly off to the side. Even the usually hyper blondes were both sombre.<p>

Hunny looked around the group. So much had changed in so little time. Before, he would've been standing next to Takashi whilst Hikaru, Kaoru and Haruhi would be clumped together with Tamaki trying to nestle himself in, and Kyoya would be by himself off to the side. Now, Kyoya and Kaoru and Takashi and Mori gravitated further together. Even Tamaki and Haruhi seemed closer… He smiled fondly at this ragtag family. Each of them was going on separate paths, but he doubted that they would go more than a couple of days without seeing each other.

"Ne~ what're we going to do now?" He asked, feeling as though even on this sad day, he had to uplift the mood, _because_, he thought, _life keeps on going_.

Tamaki smiled at his smaller sempai. "We should go to Haruhi's house!" He grinned.

"No." The girl said. "Why my house anyway? You all own mansions."

"Buh~ Then we won't get to eat your cooking!" Tamaki pouted.

"You ate my food when you came around yesterday!"

"But that's not the same!"

"How so?"

"…That was yesterday!"

The small group chuckled at the blonde as he pouted some more and started to slink off to a corner.

"Well Kyoya and I are going to finish that date we were supposed to have." Kaoru said, starting to pull at Kyoya's hand. "So bye!"

Tamaki instantly turned back around. "NO! You have to stay with us! We have to stay as a group!"

Kaoru and Kyoya raised an eyebrow simultaneously. "Why?" The older asked.

"Just for today. Just today I want us to be a family together again."

Kaoru and Kyoya looked at each other for a second, before turning back to Tamaki, smiling. "Okay."

Tamaki grinned cheesily before looking at the others, giving them each an individual glare. "And that means all of you." He said, pausing longest on Hikaru.

"Yes, Milord!" Hikaru said, saluting.

"Let's go and have fun!"

"Stupid Hikaru" Grumbled the redhead twin. It was getting on in the night, and Hikaru had mumbled something about helping Mori. Standing in front of one of the workshop/ house's many storerooms by himself with both arms full of his newest trial designs, Kaoru Ootori cursed his stupid brother and his stupid boyfriend. Of course, the low-blood pressure shadow king had disappeared somewhere as soon as he wasn't needed, most likely on the phone to some big corporation's CEO, leaving him by himself to tidy up the clothes which had been left strewn all over the workshop floor by his models. Yes, the office did have an army of maids who made the place spotless when all of the workers left, but like hell was he going to let them touch his beautiful handmade designs.

He tried pushing open the doors. "Locked. Of course it is." He sighed angrily. Carefully putting down the clothes, he slid open the secret panel next to the door. When they had built the workshop, Kyoya and Kaoru had been inspired by Ouran High's doors, looking as if they were typical western, key locked doors, but with an electronic system which could override the manual locks. He entered the twelve digit combination code quickly and the door clicked open.

"At least Hikaru's good for something." He muttered whilst picking up the deposited clothes and opening the door with his bum. A couple of years ago, Hikaru had become an electronics genius, designing games, lighting systems, safety systems, you name it, he had improved it, and he had basically wired up the whole building himself. Kaoru studied the rows of boxes and rails, filled with the vast amount of clothes that had accumulated since the company had first started up. Even in the foul mood he was in, seeing all of his best designs lined up in the same room made him feel like humming whilst he hung up all of the clothes. He didn't know what song it was, but it was probably one of Hikaru's- it was upbeat and pop-y.

"Urghhh…" The zombie-like sound had come from somewhere behind him, and Kaoru turned around, wide eyed. He was sure he had locked the door behind him… It must've been his imagination.

The mystery voice appeared from amongst the seemingly endless racks of clothes, in the bedraggled form of the dark overlord that is Kyoya Ootori. His raven black hair was slightly ruffled, and his shirt lightly crumpled, the ever present silver-rimmed glasses now tucked into his shirt pocket.

"Kyoya?" The stunned redhead couldn't believe his eyes. The usually prim dark lord looked as if… as if he'd just had a nap… on a bed of expensive clothes… "Oi, you! You're supposed to be working!"

"MMMmm but… I reaaally wanted to sleep~" Kyoya moaned, rubbing his eyes tiredly.

"That's because we've been way too busy recently! Some time you have to deny offers of parties and dinners, and have a full night's sleep instead of taking naps in storerooms!"

"Mmm… But what if one of them becomes a future sponsor or donator? I can't be rejecting their offers." Kyoya frowned.

Kaoru sighed. "I know. But your health and body is more of a priority than sealing a deal!"

"Then what about you?" Kyoya asked. "You attend the parties _and_ organise them, as well as fashion shows and meetings, hiring models, and everything else that makes the world go around… you need sleep too, otherwise you'd ruin that beautiful skin of yours." He smiled slightly, gently touching the younger man's cheek. It was still as soft as it had been in their teenage years- Kyoya and Kaoru both liked to be clean-shaven.

"Ahh but I'm superman. I don't count." He smiled, leaning into the touch.

After almost eight years of being together, that smile still made Kyoya's heart flutter like that of a teenage girl madly in love. He leant forwards slightly so that their foreheads touched. In eight years, both had grown, letting the younger catch up with the older. They still weren't equal, Kyoya was just centimetres taller, but it meant that they could see eye to eye. "Hmm…"

"Hmm?" Kaoru repeated, staring into the jet black orbs in front of him.

"Hmm." Kyoya quickly pecked Kaoru's lips, smiling cheekily. "Hmm."

"Oi you, we need to work! We have deadlines coming up!"

"Meh, you need your rest." Kyoya said, taking a couple of steps back so that he was against the wall, then sliding down it until he was sitting down. He pulled at Kaoru's hand lightly.

Kaoru sighed, but he had to admit that the floor, covered in the comfiest-looking clothes he had designed, looked mighty fine at the moment, so he copied the elder's actions and slid down the wall. He rested his head on Kyoya's shoulder, then Kyoya laid his head on Kaoru's. The redhead sighed again, mock irritated, but more relieved at having a sit-down after a long day's work. He closed his eyes and smiled. "This… it's almost exactly like the first time."

"The first time?"

"Except this time, you didn't fall on me and cover me with bruises- a prime example why exhaustion isn't a good thing."

Kyoya cringed at the memory. That had been when he was about 17, Kaoru only 16. Now they were 23 (*) and 25. It was almost a different world from the one they were in now. He chuckled lightly. Now he couldn't even remember a time when he had woken up without the warmth of another beside him. Another. Another person. Technically, his husband. He laughed again. Even the sound of that term sounded wrong. They hadn't even called each other their 'Boyfriends' let alone 'husbands'… It just didn't seem to suit them. Of course, neither did saying 'my significant other' or 'my soul mate'.

"What's so funny, hmm? Reminiscing about the good ol' days?"

"Yes… I was just thinking about the absurdity of being promoted from 'boyfriend' to 'husband' in a matter of months. And how we've never had to use those terms for each other. I'm glad."

"Glad?" Kaoru asked. He could barely remember the incident, it was so insignificant to him now, but he seemed to remember his mother and father-in-law trying to teach them the ways of the world…

"Hmm… I'm just not too fond on those terms… they're too…" Kyoya made a weird gesture with his arms, which Kaoru felt rather than saw. "Blaghhe".

"Too Blaghhe." Kaoru repeated. "Kyoya Ootori, Demon Overlord, as eloquent as the Poet Laureate."

Kyoya laughed. "That's me." He smiled, tapping his fingers on his crossed legs. "I don't know… It's just… 'husband', 'dear', 'anata' …terms of endearment. I don't really like them."

Kaoru scratched his chin. "Yeah, I get where you're coming from." He grinned. "Kyo-poo is much better."

Kyoya lightly elbowed him. "Oi." He chuckled. "Where did that even come from, anyway?"

"Hm… I think it was Tamaki."

"That would make sense." He laughed. The blonde hadn't changed a bit, even after nearly a decade. He was still air-headed, obsessed with romance, occasionally (Only occasionally though) wise, and madly in love with Haruhi, although now she was his wife.

"You know, it only took one thing to change the whole host club."

Kyoya frowned. "Really?"

"You're losing your memory in your old age, dear." Kaoru said, laughing lightly. "In fact, if it hadn't been for Haruhi, we probably wouldn't be here."

Kyoya's frown deepened. "I don't understand." He admitted.

Kaoru smiled. "When Haruhi came, mine and Hikaru's bubble burst. Hikaru started chasing after Haruhi instead of being attached to my hip. Hikaru didn't help when I was tidying up the Host Club. I went into a certain storeroom alone. Certain storeroom was occupied by a certain future husband." He shifted slightly. "Get it?"

Kyoya laughed. "You think too much. Can't you do a Tamaki and say: 'It was fate that brought us together!'"

"Mmm, but then where's the fun in that? I thought you liked analysing things."

Kyoya puffed out his cheeks then sighed. "Fii~ne" He turned his head slightly and kissed the top of Kaoru's. "Right. Nap time over." He looked at his watch. "We have a party to attend with the English Ambassador in one hour."

"Oh joy." Kaoru said, reluctantly opening his eyes. "You know, I still find it amazing how you turn from being adorable to businessman in less time than it takes to bat and eyelid."

"The same can be said about you." Kyoya said, only slightly immune to being called 'adorable'. He slowly stood up and offered his hand to Kaoru who graciously took it.

"Thanky" He said after he had been pulled up. Then he looked down at himself, then at Kyoya. "Right. Shower then get dressed in one hour. Might be a bit tight. But we can do this." Still holding Kyoya's hand, he dragged him to the door. Kyoya stumbled slightly, so Kaoru paused. Using his free hand, Kaoru took out the glasses, flicked them open and re-placed them on Kyoya's face. "There we go." He smiled.

"Ahh, much better." Kyoya smiled. "I can see who you are now."

Kaoru rolled his eyes. "Oh humour." He said, but grinned anyway.

Kyoya leaned in and kissed him again. "Right. Now I'm ready to face the world."

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** Hehe~ Time skip anyone?

Yes, like I've been saying, I sort of run out of things to do with them in High school, so I used a strategic time skip! Don't worry, I'll still be continuing with the story, and maybe if I come up with more things for them to have done when they were younger, I'll write it as a memory :D Hope this hasn't put anyone off…

(*) EDIT: I realise that at this time, Kaoru wouldn't have had his birthday yet XD Wooooops


	27. Short chapter is minuscule

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ouran high school host club.

**Chapter 27: Short chapter is minuscule. **

**A/N:** Right. So. Basically. Exams are looming and so I am trying to stop myself from failing. Which wouldn't be great. However this entails… uhm… Okay, don't beat around the bush, Nina. Right. Until about the 19th of May, don't expect too much out of me. After that first week of exams, I'll have study leave (which I'll sacrifice for you lot :3) but from now till then, my life is going to be hell. Please don't kill me D: This is just the introduction to a new story arc… Uhm… yeah. I've planned about 10 chapters. PLANNED. So I have ideas but not time, as is always the way. So… I shall hopefully see you again in about… 2/3 weeks :/

* * *

><p>Kyoya sat down next to Kaoru on the sofa with an "oomph", draping his arm around the younger's neck. He grinned happily as Kaoru lazily looked up at him with a sleepy smile. The TV was on but left with the volume turned down slightly so that the weatherman's low drone was audible but his words went unheard.<p>

"Deal?" The redhead asked, knowing from the other's demeanour that the phone call had indeed gone well.

"We're being sponsored by the English company 'Martin LTD'. They were very interested in our 'innovative style.'" He rolled his eyes jokingly. They had quickly discovered a couple of years ago that getting married had been a tremendous success. In a climate where the Western world's attitudes on homosexuality were so severely argued, the extremely famous, rich couple had been quickly snapped up by the news corporations as either 'innovative' and 'admirable' or 'blasphemous' and 'unholy.' Either way, it gained them attention and companies were both scared and excited about associating themselves with the two.

"So?" Kaoru asked, turning his full attention to the man next to him. "What's the company like?" Usually he'd be clued-in on the people they were dealing with but he had only just finished his last set of clothes for the next fashion week and had been deemed by Kyoya as being too stressed to have to think about every possible candidate/ customer. "Plus," Kyoya had added at the time, "I want to at least have one job around here."

"Hm…" Kyoya put a finger to his lip as if in deep thought. "The CEO's very… British. He's young, definitely not as young as us though. He has golden curls, emerald eyes, peachy skin and beautiful facial hair." He said as whimsically as he could as if describing a dream.

"…"

Kyoya grinned with purposely poorly hidden evilness. "What?" He asked with all the innocence of Satan.

"…"

"Fine…" Kyoya pouted, then smiled. "He's giving us a 12 month contract to redesign the whole company.

Kaoru's jaw dropped. "The WHOLE company?"

"Yup."

"Not JUST the costumes?"

"Yup." Kyoya's grin grew wider.

"GAh!"

"Good or bad gah?" Kyoya asked, slightly concerned at their shared sanity.

"Good gah! We've spent eight years getting here!" For the last 8 years they had worked mainly on a series of smaller projects- usually just to establish themselves as a brand.

"Hehe~"

Kaoru raised his eyebrow slightly. It was still hard to believe that Kyoya was capable of making that sound.

"You're making fun of my laugh again, aren't you."

"No dear!"

"Hmmm~"

Kaoru smiled then picked up the TV remote, turning it off. This was their house now- Yoshio had given it them as part of their wedding present. Something had told the old man that they weren't going to give the place up anyway, but he was only shown the observatory at the stag do- which both bachelors attended, not caring about tradition and neither wanting to be the one having the hen-do with both parties' mothers and sisters. They had been informed that it had been a very civilised hen-do though, seeing as one of said sisters was barely primary school age, and a very disconcerted Haruhi had vetoed any kind of alcoholic beverage from the area.

Suddenly, Kaoru jumped up, using the momentum to level the other man up.

Kyoya made a half groan, half surprised sound. "What?" He asked, slightly afraid of the answer and sort-of expecting a burglar behind them or something to that effect. "What's wrong?" He made a conscious effort to not look over his shoulder for ninjas dressed in all black.

Kaoru bowed slightly in a regent style as if he were a prince asking a beautiful young girl for her hand.

"Uh, Kaoru? I don't understand." Kyoya said, resting his hand in the proffered one as he assumed was needed of him.

The redhead grinned as he tightened his grip on that hand then looped his other arm until it rested on Kyoya's lower back. "You need some exercise dearest, lest you get portly and rotund!"

"Exercise?" Kyoya repeated. He was going to make some jokey comment about getting more than enough exercise in the bedroom, before deciding against doing so and risking losing any such contact.

"Yes. Exercise." He started to hum a tune he had heard at a ball before; it probably wasn't the right tempo, pitch, octave… whatever else was needed to make it sound good, but at least it was vaguely recognisable. He took a step back, pulling the other body so that they were constantly attached to one another.

"I do believe that you're doing it wrong." Kyoya laughed, not really caring. Everybody knew how to dance in their society. It was just a question of whether they were a born leader or not… he adjusted his hand so that it was now around Kaoru's rather than inside it before straightening up to his full height, taking full advantage of the few centimetres separating them. As he put his next foot down, he turned direction, making it fully clear that he was taking the position of power.

Kaoru kept humming the tune as they whirled, sometime slowly sometime speeding up. "Okay. I feel dizzy now." He suddenly said after a particularly speedy and whirly part.

"Good. I'm glad you said first- I don't think I could stand another second."

"I haven't sat down all day."

"Neither have I."

They used whatever momentum was left from the last twirl to fling themselves into a sofa-bound direction. They sat in a heap together, slightly on top of one another, too exhausted to move. Kyoya's eyes flicked quickly to the clock on the opposite wall. "Crap."

"What?" Kaoru asked, noting the elder's tone of urgency.

"We were only dancing for 5 minutes and we've both collapsed into a panting mass."


	28. YAOI!

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ouran high school host club.

**Chapter 28: YAOI! **

**Seriously, if you haven't read the 2011 chapters of the manga, you're in for a surprise or three XD**

* * *

><p>Hikaru sighed as he opened yet another letter. It was almost exactly the same as the rest- 'Dear Mr. Hitachiin, we would love to have you design our company's blahblahblah…' he tossed it over his shoulder so that it landed on the pile of identical-looking envelopes before reaching out and turning on two of the laptops surrounding him. Two was his favourite amount- he could dual wield them without having to remove his hands for a third, and if he needed more screen space, he could simply plug them in to one of the many monitors littering his floor.<p>

He laughed as he opened one of the e-mails in his personal account to find a dancing penguin gif. "Oh Tamaki… don't you have companies to run?" He muttered as he shook his head and thought about the major sources of procrastination he had- Tamaki's regular e-mails (Hikaru was the only one who didn't get annoyed when his inbox was littered with his simple-minded spam), visiting his adorable little sister Ageha, watching Mori sleep and the internet. Probably not in that order of frequency. Mori _was _just the cutest thing when he slept.

He scrolled down the screens he was on, occasionally commenting on a picture which made him laugh. He turned around when there was a knock on his door. "Come in."

The door opened slightly before it got caught on one of the many obstructions… obstructing it. The door closed before being opened again with slightly more force, but it still didn't open more than a crack. "Uhmm…"

Hikaru rolled his eyes and sighed, mock exasperated before reluctantly standing up and stretching, letting out a large yawn. Then he plodded over to the door and tried to shift the obstruction- a desktop tower- with the side of his leg. Unfortunately it was heavier than he had anticipated and had to bend down to carefully roll it out of the way, making a grunting sound as he did. Once out of the way, he pulled open the door the reveal a smiling Mori with a pair of legs dangling around his neck. If the man had thought that Hunny growing up would spare him from being a small person play-thing, he was definitely wrong.

"Age-chaaan~" (*) Hikaru beamed as he saw the girl bouncing up and down on his shoulders.

"KANIII!" The little girl giggled as she was lifted down into her brother's arms. She had taken to calling her brother 'Kani' or 'crab' when she was too little to be able to say 'Hikaru-niisan' and so shortened it to one of the words she was learning at the time- premium food names. Then she had named Kaoru 'Gao' because of a combination of it being the first gift he had given her- a lion t-shirt and the shortened version of his name. (Gao being the sound that Lions make in Japan, i.e. Roar)

"What are you doing here, eh? Where's mummy?"

"I saw Yuzuha-san on my way here. She asked if we could look after her until tomorrow."

"Mori-nii says that Ageha can stay!" She grinned, hugging her brother. "Ageha likes Kani's house!"

"And I like Age-chan staying with us," Hikaru said, spinning her around.

"Hikaru… your room…" Mori's tone was more than slightly displeased as he placed his briefcase down on the sofa with a small, glittery pink one.

"Hmm?" The man grinned sheepishly at his boyfriend. "Oh… uh… I was going to clean it later..."

"KANI'S BEING TOLD OFF! YAY!"

"Shhhh Age-chan!" He said, lightly poking her in the cheek, making her giggle even more.

Mori raised an eyebrow, taking his jacket off and rolling up his shirt sleeves. He took another look around the room, noticing the tens of monitors and laptops littering the floor in between broken furniture, food wrappers and massive tangles or wires. "Tidied up last night…"

"Eheheh… yeah… I couldn't find my USB this morning and didn't want to disturb your work to ask you where it was…" Hikaru replied, slightly distracted as his sister tried to wriggle her way out of his arms and onto the floor. "…it was in my jeans pocket though!" He grinned as if finding it was a major accomplishment before his brain remembered why the conversation had started. "Oh. Yeah. I will tidy it up. In a bit."

Mori sighed slightly but smiled soon after as he watched Hikaru following the girl around the heaps of mess. "Ageha… don't hurt yourself."

"Yes sir!" She mock saluted before continuing on her travels. "Adventure is out there!" She cried, obviously having just seen the Up! movie. She giggled as she clambered on top of half a table and used her hands as pretend binoculars. "I spy a sea monster! Avast!" She jumped from it, picking up a ruler from the floor and brandishing it like a sword before running towards a green cushion surrounded by tentacle-like cables.

"So…How'd the case go?" Hikaru asked, walking around the couch so that he could still see the adventurer whilst being close to Mori.

"We won."

Hikaru smiled. "Of course you did. I wouldn't still be with you if you didn't win every case." He paused, then remembered how seriously Mori took things. "I joke of course."

Mori looked slightly confused, but decided not to dwell on it, so he smiled at him before looking back at the girl who seemed to have beat the stuffing out of the cushion and moved onto shouting at an evil 'snake' (a clump of wires) and jumping around claiming the floor was lava.

Mori ruffled his black hair, then brought his hand away, frowing at it. "Wet…" he muttered, staring at the droplets. He looked more than slightly worried about the possibility that his possible future sister hadn't been able to manage her bladder whilst riding him, but then realisation along with relief swept his feature clean. "Rain."

"Rain?" Kaoru raised an eyebrow. It was almost summer- the last time he went outside it had been around 30 degree centigrade. (86*F ;))

"Torrential downpour. I missed most of it, but got my head wet before I was given an umbrella."

"Downpour?"

"Yes… I think there's a typhoon coming…"

Hikaru frowned. _It is almost wet season, so I guess that makes sense…_ "Do you think it'll come today? Or…"

"Hmm…" Mori looked at the ceiling, as if he could see through it at the cloudy sky. "Storm tonight… small typhoon over the weekend. Larger ones to come."

It always amazed him at how Mori could do things like that… 'like that' meaning watching the weather forecast, reading the newspaper and being able to cook something edible. "Talking about food… what are you cooking tonight?"

…_We weren't talking about food,_ Mori thought before linking the possible thought paths together. He nodded at Ageha. "I thought she would want Curry rice."

No sooner had the words come out of his mouth, Ageha was chanting; "YAY YAY CURRY RICE! YAY YAY CURRY RICE!" She had only recently been introduced to 'commoner food', especially ones which were served at the table in big communal pots to be served, like with hotpot or Oden, but she was already infatuated with it. "MORI-NII! HARU-BA! MORI-NII! HARU-BA!" And of course, Haruhi's seriousness compared to the rest of her brother's friends earned her the honorific of 'aunty' rather than 'big sister'.

"Shhh," Hikaru said again, putting his fingers to his lips. "Aga-chan the dragon is sleeping! You don't want to wake it up!" which got her quiet almost instantly as her eyes widened and she pointed her ruler at a big pile of rubbish.

"Hey Aga-chan! Be careful around there please… there's a lot of importan-" In the process of moving towards her, Hikaru 'did a Hitachiin', so called because of the frequency of fall damage the twins took in their teenage years. What constituted as a doing of a Hitachiin was the simple act of falling, tripping, sliding… anything which eventually lands you on the floor or otherwise harms you on the way down. He stared at the floor, stunned beyond belief that he was still capable of being a clumsy idiot. "Ow."

Before he knew it, Mori was on the ground with him, worry creasing every facial feature. "Hikaru... are you okay? Should I call Kyoya?"

Hikaru pouted and blushed. "No it's fine. I'll just have a bit of a bruise on my butt…"

In a split second, Mori's face broke into a quite gleeful pervy expression and then reverted back to his renowned stoic one. He leant in so that his lips brushed Hikaru's ear. "I can check that out for you if you want…"

The redhead's eyes widened until they practically took up his whole face. "M-ugh-uhret" He didn't show it regularly, but beneath his knowledgeable lawyer exterior, Mori was a properly embarrassing comes-up-with-phrases-and-I-don't-know-how-to-respond-to-them type of person. And, when directed at him, usually quite dirty too.

"Hehehe~ Yaoi! Yay!" Both turned to find that Ageha was pointing at them with her 'sword', a cheesy grin plastered on her face. "Kani and Mori-nii are yaoi!"

"Y-Yaoi?" Shocked, Hikaru's mouth opened wide whilst Mori's eyebrows dipped. "Age-chan? Who…what…" This brought up very uncomfortable memories of their various meeting with Kirimi Nekozawa.

"Kirimi-nee showed Ageha her manga when Ageha visititittiteed Hunny!"

"When you visited Hunny?.." There was an awkward pause as Hikaru took a couple of seconds to work out what the link was. "Ohhhhh…" It still hadn't really sunk in that Nekozawa and Hunny sempais were… he mentally gulped. Going out. Kyoya had said the conflicting personalities were what made them such a great pair. But he was still astounded. However this new tidbit of information did make sense… Kirimi was like the second generation Renge, albeit a lot more reclusive and less… yellow. She was almost exactly like her brother, with the black wigs and cape, but she did venture out more often to fangirl over the school's new host club members. She'd recently developed the laugh as well… although instead of motorised platforms, she seemed to be able to materialise doors to creep from.

Mori crouched down even more so that he was at eye level with the girl. "Ageha, pointing is rude," he said, gently removing the ruler from her hand and putting it on the ground. "And the correct term is 'both Kani and Mori-nii are gay' or 'homosexual'. You shouldn't say 'yaoi'."

Hikaru clenched his fists and hit Mori on the head. "Oi! Don't tech my baby sister strange words, idiot." He glared at the man before pushing him away a bit further, conscious that she would probably report this to any and all willing to listen. "Age-chan, forget what Mori-nii just said, and don't take manga off of strange perverts."

"Kirimi-nee isn't a per…perv… perbet!" The girl puffed her cheeks out indigently, cross that her brother wasn't happy that she had learnt a new word. She sniffed, trying to bring tears to her eyes. "Niichan… being mean…"

"I am not!"

"You are~!"

"Am not!"

"Are!"

His next 'Am not' was muffled by a large hand being clamped around his mouth. Mori pulled both of them towards him. "Come on. Let's make dinner together okay Ageha?"

"YAAAAY!" The girl did a running jump, latching herself onto Mori's neck. "Up! UP! UP!" she called.

Mori nodded and slowly obeyed her orders, getting up from his knees. "Oh Hikaru… Kaoru and Kyoya are coming later. They want to say goodbye to you and Ageha before tomorrow."

Hikaru frowned then looked at his watch which doubled as a calendar. "28th of May… Huh. Last time I checked it was May 5th…" He frowned, thinking about the significance of May the 29th. It did ring a bell… "OH!" _That's it, they're going to London to meet their new business group people things and then start their world tour… probably shouldn't have forgotten about that_. "oh yeah… Okay, that sounds… delightful…"

"Kanii, where Gao and Yaya going?"

"They're going to meet some business people Age-chan… and please stop calling Kyoya 'Yaya'… it's quite scary…"

"But Yaya is Yaya!" She paused in thought. "Is Gao and Yaya yaoi?"

"Gay. Kyoya and Kaoru are gay."

"So Gao and Yaya and Mori-nii and Kani and Hunny and Neko are ya- gay?"

"Yes."

Hikaru face-palmed. He could only hope his sister would grow up to be normal surrounded by his 'doting' friends.

"Then what is Tama-chan and Haru-ba? Is Haru-ba okama like Rankababa?"

Hikaru's eyes widened, and not for the first time that hour. "No Age-chan, otherwise they wouldn't have been able to have Natsume-kun, would they?"

"Oh. Why?"

"Because… uhmm…" Worried, he looked to Mori for help.

"…when two people love each other a lot…"

"HEY! SHE'S ONLY 5!"

"Sex!"

Hikaru's eye twitched. "Age-chan… I don't think I heard you right… what did you just say?"

"SEX!" She giggled, making a jumping notion in Mori's arms. "Sexsexsexsex!"

"Age-chan! No! Shh! Don't use that word!"

"Whyyy~"

"Because… it's… uhm…" _What the hell do you tell a 5 year old...?_ "It's like VOLDEMORT!"

She gasped, clamping her hands over her mouth.

"Yes! Don't ever say that word, okay?"

"Kanii…." Her eyes seemed to be filling with tears. "Kanii… are you going to die? You said… his name…"

_Ah shit._ His eyes darted around the room for inspiration. "Of course not Age-chan, because.." His mouth formed some random words before he finally found an excuse. "Because I have Mori-nii to protect me! He's really strong you know? He can beat every one…" _I really shouldn't have used a reference to a book I've never read…_ "He can even use magic to beat Voldemort!"

Her jaw dropped as she turned to the wizard in question. "Mori-nii can use magic?"

"…" Using one hand to hold her up, he put his other behind her ear, then removed it to reveal a silver rose, causing her to gasp again.

"Wow! It's so pretty! Mori-nii is so cool!"

Mori smiled before cupping the rose so that it couldn't be seen anymore. "1….2…3." On the last number, he unclenched his hand to show that the rose had multiplied. He put one rose carefully between his lips, holding it as he'd run out of hands, then fixed the other into the clapping girl's hair. Then he turned to Hikaru, removed the rose from his mouth and placed it into the younger man's now straightened, neck length hair. "Beautiful."

Hikaru blushed as he grinned. "thanks…" Even after all these years, the sight of the familiar roses sent a wave of heart-warming nostalgia over him.

"YAOIYAOIYAOIYAOII!"

Mori raised an eyebrow at the girl before using his free hand to cover her eyes. Then he leant over to Hikaru and kissed him.

"Mori-nii! Hand! Can't see!"

"It's another magic trick." Mori hushed, smiling at the other man who let out an angry moan about being kissed within such a close range to his sister. "Be patient."

"PAYCHENSE PAYSHENSE!" Ageha cried, obviously unaware of its meaning. "!"

Her babbling was only cut short by the sound of the doorbell ringing, which also caused Hikary to make a relieved sound, gently trying to push Mori away. "That must be Kaoru!" he said (or tried to say with the best of his ability whilst still being lip locked) with a sense of urgency, probably only because somewhere in the back of his mind, he was telling himself that if he didn't end the kiss now, he wouldn't have wanted it to end as just a kiss.

"Doorbell!Doorbell!Yaya!Gaaaaaooo!"

Mori reluctantly released his grip on the two Hitachiins, letting Ageha down so that she could run to the door, following closely behind.

They went through the bedroom door and descended until they reached the front one, opening it to find a more than displeased husband-wife pair.

"You're wet." Hikaru helpfully observed.

"Yes. Thank you, Hikaru. Now would you let us in?" Kyoya said, trying not to let his still famous purple aura spill into the house.

"What took you so long?" Kaoru asked, pushing his way past his older brother, taking off his coat and offering the obligatory bottle of wine to Mori who took it with a bow of his head.

"Mori-nii was using his magic wand to beat Sex so that it doesn't hurt Kanii!"

There was a very long silence as all eyes turned to Hikaru, Mori being the only exception as he wandered off to place the expensive vintage bottle in a wine rack.

"Hi~ka~ru… what have you and Mori been doing in front of our little sister?" Kaoru said very slowly, annunciating every syllable.

"Wh- n- misunderstanding! VERY VERY BIG misunderstanding. Kirimi was teaching her about Yaoi and-"

"You thought you would continue her education?"

"NO! It's uhm… Harry Potter… and manga… and…" Flustered, he turned to where he expected Mori to be. "HIS FAU- oh… he left."

Kyoya raised a displeased eyebrow before crouching down before Ageha. "Ne, Ageha, why don't you forget about that silly Hikaru? You don't ever have to talk to him again, okay? He's only going to infect you with his horrible mind."

"Hehehe Yaya's being mean to Kanii~" She grinned. "Kanii! Pervert! Kaanii! Pervert! KaniPervert! Kani's a pervert!"

Hikaru rolled his eyes. "She couldn't even say it earlier," he muttered as he watched Kyoya agree with her, cheering her on.

"Yes, that's right, Ageha! Hikaru **is** a silly pervert!"

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** Herrooooooooo :) After an extremely long leave of absence, I'm back! :D I hope anyone else with exams did well and I look forward to your continuing support :3

(*) I didn't know what Hikaru would call Ageha… I assume it's pronounced "Ah. Geh. Ha." So "Ah. Geh" sounds about right?


	29. Yaya

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ouran high school host club.

**Chapter 29: Yaya**

* * *

><p>"Then, then, Ageha beated the green monster and jumped over the massive volcano!"<p>

"Oh wow, that's amazing Age-chan," both brothers said at the same time, still retaining their twin telepathy to a certain degree. "Then what?"

"Then, then, then… Then we talked about Mori-nii and Haru-ba's curry!"

"Ah well their curries are the best in the world!" Kaoru said, towelling his hair- now cropped quite short and dyed a dark, flaming coal colour, dry. The three Hitachiins had bathed together- the eldest due to his lack of hygiene in recent times due to computer addiction, the middle because he was already wet from being drenched by the rain and the youngest because she had managed to not only spill printer ink all over herself, but around 7 other unidentifiable substances as well. And of course, neither of the black haired bishies had been allowed into the family's bathroom lest it get a little *too* rowdy. Instead, Kyoya had opted to use one of the house's (well more like mansion's) many guest bathrooms, whilst Mori went to get changed in the room his wardrobe was in.

"Gao, Gao! Why are you leaving? Where are you going?"

"To do some boring business-y stuff"

"Will you leave Yaya? Can I has him?"

"No, I need him Age-chan."

"For your yaoi~?"

"Uhh…yes, Age-chan, but not only for that…"

"Then whaaaaaaat~?"

"Like I said, business stuff! Yaya and I have to work hard, unlike a certain lazy brother…"

"Oi! I work a lot thank you very much!"

"If, by 'work' you mean raising the amount of reblogs on tumblr, then yes you really do work incredibly hard, dearest brother."

Hikaru scowled at his brother before pulling a T-shirt over his head. "Fine. Whatever. I'm not even going to argue with you."

"Because you don't want to lie in front of our adorable little sister."

"…" Hikaru looked at Kaoru seriously before sighing. "Yes," he said in a small voice, "basically."

Kaoru smiled wryly, about to say something but stopping when Hikaru suddenly looked up.

"Actually…"

"Actually?"

"Y'know… I've always wanted to say this but… You were wrong." Hikaru smiled confidently, his posture suddenly straightening.

"What? About what?"

"It was a looooooooooong time ago… maybe around when you first started dating Kyoya…"

"…" Kaoru had crossed his arms, listening silently.

"I got it in the gob y'know, from that demon lord…" He hadn't used the term for a while and it made him smile with a mix of nostalgia and fear.

"You always did…"

"No… about a certain thing. Apparently, you thought that I was infatuated with Haruhi! That you felt lonely and left out because I had abandoned you for her!"

"Well… at the time it certainly _looked _that way." He remembered the time he had sent them on a date to get the wheels rolling… but then Hikaru had come around and seen that Haruhi and Tamaki were basically made for each other…

"But you weren't the only gay one!" Hikaru said proudly.

"Uh… I was still right. At that moment in time, you were in love with Haruhi. I even had long internal monologues and analogies to describe our failing relationship!"

"…you what?"

"Yeah… there was one about a pumpkin or something… and one about a castle crumbling… it was pretty poetic."

"You're such a sad child."

"What? Says the one who considers his laptop his best friend."

"They. It's plural. My Laptop**s** are my best friends"

"Oh wow, you really are a great contributor to society."

"Yeah well-" Hikaru was cut off by a knock on the door. "C'min, we're all decent," he said after a relieved sigh.

"Damn. I told you we should've come earlier." Neither twin could quite work out which person the voice belonged to as both Kyoya and Mori stepped in as the door opened.

"Dinner is served Princess," Kyoya said, bowing slightly in a princely style. "Now work out which of you is the Princess…"

"Bagsy not me," was Hikaru's immediate reply.

"Mememme!" Ageha jumped, waving her hand in the air. "GAO CAN BE KING! I WANNA BE THE PWINCESS!"

"King?" Kyoya asked, half smiling at the girl's enthusiasm, half frowning with a sense of unrest. "Why is Kaoru King?"

"Because Yaya is the Queen! Yaya's the mummy in the yaoi!"

There was a snigger from the side of the room only occupied by Hikaru. "…Kyoya, I think you just got pwned by a 5 year old kid."

"…shut up."

* * *

><p>The aeroplane was moderately quiet, being a private jet with brilliant sound cancelling technology employed so that any and all engine sounds disappeared.<p>

Kyoya took out his tablet and swiped at it with his fingers for a while until he reached the stock exchange page. (*) He scrolled down, taking in the numbers. As he had expected, most of the European countries were flagging, as well as quite a few others… now wasn't exactly the best time to be trying to make a name in the poor economic climate… big companies wanted to associate themselves with well-known companies that they knew weren't going to crash and burn as soon as there was a slight recession. And although Kyoya definitely wouldn't go down without a hell of a fight, he couldn't exactly tell that to a group of people who had hundreds of years of collective experience.

Curious as ever, he flicked to the Ootori group. They hadn't been doing too badly recently despite the climate- in fact last year they had made considerable profits whilst some of their weaker competitors had struggled to break even. So when he found, instead of the usual green plus sign, a red arrow pointing down next to the company name, he frowned. He clicked on it, bringing up a complex graph, then used his thumb and forefinger in the zoom in motion. At the top of a very steady line which very rarely deviated from an upwards motion was a dip. Not a very big one, but not a small one either. Not something that could go unnoticed by… well anyone really. And one small dip could most definitely lead to another.

His frown deepened as his phone vibrated, angry at having to move in a way which would disturb Kaoru whose head was resting on Kyoya's shoulder as he slept. It was a text. From a peeved stock buyer. He responded quickly and calmly, at every point mentioning how he wasn't actually part of the Ootori company anymore. Then another text came, this time from Tamaki, asking if he needed any financial help.

'_Kyoya! R U OK? Ur dad's stck (n) U need $?' _

Kyoya face palmed at Tamaki's efforts at text-speak. It really was horrendously bad.

'_Stop talking like a pleb and mind your own business. Literally. I see Suoh stock's gone down recently.' _

'_:'( Ur being mean agyn'_

'_You're making up contractions again.'_

'_It's fashynble!'_

'_Taking out random letters doesn't make it right, Tmki.'_

'…_you spllt my name rng!" _

'…_I will kill you one day, you know that?"_

'…_Sorry. OTZ –LOOK! He's kneeling! __(__)'_

'…'

'__(._.)_ Please don't kill me. Natsume-kun will cry.' _

'…_your son will cry even more if he sees how little his father worked during his lifetime.'_

…No reply. Kyoya sighed, leaning back in his seat as he wondered what had happened to get the company in such a bind. Suddenly his phone went again, this time it was a call. The caller ID showed it was his eldest brother, a rare occurrence indeed. Whilst no Ootori other than his father had been particularly pleased with his coming out, the others had, if not feigned happiness, not shown open disgust. However Yuuichi and his wife had made an open show of their displeasure, not even turning up to their wedding.

"Good evening Aniki."

"Have you seen?"

"What, the shares? Of course I have."

"…"

"What? Was there something you wanted?"

"…I just wanted to let you know."

"Right, so now you have…"

"Not about that."

Kyoya sighed. "Then about what," he said, exasperated.

There was a moment's silence, as if the man was weighing up what he was about to say.

"I… We blame you for this." The phone disconnected.

Kyoya's jaw literally dropped. "…What?" He uttered. "…what?" He clicked 'redial', but got nothing. Then he tried every number he associated with his eldest brother with a growing frown. The hospital told him that Yuuichi-sama wasn't in at the moment. His wife brusquely told him that he was busy and his other brother didn't know where he was. He rung his father twice but both times went through to the answering machine, so he guessed he was in a meeting. "…what the hell is this?"

Kyoya heard a sleepy yawn and looked down to see Kaoru staring back up at him with tired eyes. "What's the matter?" He asked, still only half awake.

"Hmm… Ootori stocks aren't doing too well…"

"What, and that's got you this worked up? You're basically swearing."

Kyoya shrugged. "My brother phoned me."

"Akito-niisan? What did he want?"

"No… Yuuichi."

"Yuuichi?" Kaoru echoed in surprise. "He never calls you!"

"I know… that's why I was off put slightly.

"Right… so what did he want?"

"To tell me that he 'blames' me for it."

"What? That's stupid! What does he think you've done?"

Kyoya shrugged, turning the phone in his hands.

"Our gayness crashed the market 8 years after we came out?" He released a short burst of laughter, but frowned when he saw that Kyoya didn't even seem to be listening. "Has it really got you this worked up? Ignore him, he's just being a stupid prick like usual."

"Mmm…"

After years of experience, Kaoru had learnt that that noise indicated that Kyoya was in deep thought, and it was probably best to not speak to him. It didn't bother him much- he wanted to sleep anyway and they could talk about it later when Kyoya wasn't so worked up and he so tired. "Well try to get at least some sleep- we have that meeting pretty soon after we get off."

"Mmhmm." Kyoya seemed to have at least heard him as he leant back into his seat, his head turning to rest on the younger's, his eyes closing, although it was plain to see that despite his relaxed actions, his mind was racing a thousand miles a second.

* * *

><p>As he stepped off of the plane, Kyoya rubbed an eye sleepily letting out a small yawn.<p>

"Amazing…"

"Hmm?" Kyoya tried to say, mid-yawn.

"You're the most adorable 25 year old I know."

"I should hope so- You only know a couple…"

"Ehhh~ You didn't react to be called adorable! That's no fun!"

Kyoya pouted ever so slightly. "No… why should I react to that?"

Kaoru's lips angled up instantly into an evil grin. "Ohh~ Is that true Kyou-nyan?" He put his hands to his head as if they were cat ears. "Ish Kyo-nyan not going to act adowable?"

Kyoya's eyes widened, unconsciously scanning the area around them to see if anyone was watching, finding that everyone's heads were suspiciously turned to face a different direction. Apart from one. Who was staring right at them with a smug smile placed on his lips. "Shhh… I think that's him…"

"Huh?" Kaoru frowned at how he had seemingly been brushed off before he followed Kyoya's eyes to see a blonde dude staring at them. A blonde dude he recognised. "Ohhh… that's guy we're working for… Not bad…" His lip twitched, wanting revenge for his earlier lack of cuteness. "I can see what you mean about the facial hair. Very nice beard."

Kyoya's head snapped back at him before he raised an eyebrow in a this-guy-has-money-so-be-serious way. His hand hung by his side, so he casually reached for Kaoru's in a way that he hoped didn't seem unnatural.

Kaoru mockingly raised an eyebrow in a When-am-I-not way, accepting the hand. They shared a long look in which they mentally conversed, a trick they had discovered only a couple of years earlier. Apparently, their devious minds were so similar; they could basically understand what the other was trying to say just by minute eyebrow raises and small smiles.

Simultaneously, they turned to the man with matching smiles they had rehearsed to perfection- a smile that portrayed their undying love to one another whilst also being business-like, formal and polite. "Good afternoon," Kyoya said in perfect English as they neared him. "Mister Green I presume?" They released their grips on one another so that he could offer his hand for a handshake.

"Yes indeed." Green's smug smile dissolved into one so formal and flawless that it was unreadable. "It is a pleasure to meet you Mister Ootori's…" He shook Kyoya's then Kaoru's hand.

Kyoya nodded politely. "But please, it gets confusing to call us both Ootori-"

"If you don't mind using my maiden(**) name of Hitachiin?" Kaoru finished.

"Of course! Or if that is too formal, why not just call me Adrian?" He smiled, leaning in ever so slightly to Kaoru.

"Uh…" _Ever heard of personal space?_

"For a guy, you're surprisingly cute."

Kyoya instantly became defensive of his husband, letting an almost inaudible grow slip through before he could stop it.

"Woah tiger!" Adrian chuckled, taking a step back. "That's it! That's what I was looking for… a brilliant reaction. That's all I needed to see."

"Heh?"

"Ahh, what I mean is… All this hype over you two… bit OTT, don't you think?" He paused momentarily as if he wasn't asking a rhetorical question. "And the way you two only held hands when you spotted me? Bit iffy. I just wanted to know if that was your stunt, something either of you made up to gain a big name in quick time."

"…uhh…"

"You see, I did my research on you two. Kaoru Hitachiin, 'devilish twin' known mostly for your 'twincest' act with your brother, yes?"

Confused, Kaoru nodded, unsure as to where this was going but feeling he still had to show he was following.

"And Kyoya Ootori, 'High-blood-pressure demon Lord', eh? Known for your cunning plans that never failed… So naturally, I just assumed that this-" He gestured their closeness in a way that said 'your relationship', ", was all a fake. A hoax. I was intending to tell your authorities and the media… but I think I'm wrong." He paused again, this time silently willing them to say something.

"Uhh…"

"But the way you're so protective of him! Adorable. Really." Adrian stroked his beard. "You know- if you hadn't had reacted like that, I might just have acted all typical-evil-villain character in those… uhm…" He clicked his fingers, trying to think of the word. "Manga! Those manga you have."

"…uhhhhhh…"

"Y'know, the love triangle ones? Where a new character is introduced who tries to woo the protagonist… then threatens her so that she has to make a choice about whether to think about what she wants or is best for her partner? The person she loves?"

"…I… uh…"

"…right. So I'm the only one who sees that? Fine…" He rolled his eyes, mock exasperated. "Oh! You know who you remind me of?"

"Uh…"

"Naruto and Sasuke." He held his hands near his face, his fingers spread wide as if he'd solved the world's problems. "Amazing. This is actually amazing. You're exactly like them!"

"I'm sorry, what?" The man was going as fast as a bullet train and seemed to be verging on nonsensical. Kaoru had been the one replying so far- Kyoya seemed to be in a state of shock or something. But the reference to Naruto… it reminded him of the time he and his brother had cosplayed as Naruto for Halloween. It wasn't a great experience… although it had definitely been a catalyst in starting their relationship…

"You know…" He indicated Kaoru with both hands. "The fun loving one… quite cute but with a serious side? And then… uh…" He pointed at Kyoya. "The handsome emo one. Plus they kiss. Twice. In the anime. Which makes them gay right?"

"Yes… Uh… I'm sorry, pause." Kaoru held up a hand in an attempt to stop the man's continuous flow of speech. "Do you mean to say that this business deal was primarily to see if we were actually in a relationship?"

"Yup!"

"…"

"…And now this is the part where you-" Adrian indicated the silent brooding mass that is Kyoya, "blow up! You exclaim about how you don't like being made a mockery out of! How you hate my atrocious methods and how you've wasted your time and money!" He smiled excitedly, as if he was watching or commentating on his favourite TV show. Adrian's beaming smile faltered a little when he saw Kyoya's face.

"…oh really now."

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** One of these days I'll get around to making a story cover... which I'm really excited about doing :3 Any suggestions?

I'm not even joking, my favourite line so far in this FF was in this chapter XD I wonder if you can guess XD

(*)…I have no idea what this looks like so pshh xD Also, I just chucked any technical sounding terms I could think of into it… XD So they're most probably wrong :P

(**) Uh… do males have maiden names? XD I'm so clueless…


	30. Getonwithit

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ouran high school host club.

**Chapter 30: An incredibly mundane chapter in which I set the scene and all that kind of thing. Y'know, trying to stuff in as much crap as possible so that I don't actually have to think about plot and the like. Jeez I'm lazy, and this chapter title is too long. (A.k.a Getonwithit.)**

* * *

><p>Kyoya took in a slightly deeper breath than normal before crossing his arms, raising an eyebrow. Then he let it out, smiling a smile with a million and one possible meanings. "Oh really now. You really think that way? You think you can predict my reactions like they're from some anime?" He chuckled slightly, taking in the slightly confused expression on Adrian's face. "You sir, are certainly a troll."<p>

"Heh?"

"You're not the only one who's done some background checking. Adrian Martin. A man who knows no fear when it comes to making and breaking companies… when ripping their remains to shreds. Although I have to admit, it was hard getting even that much information. It seems like not only do you have good sources on everyone else, but you're able to keep them quiet. What do you gain, eh? It's not popularity or fame… and therefore not money either. Are you one with sadistic tendencies? Get pleasure from hurting others? To tell you the truth, I've been dying to ask you these questions. You're a bit of an enigma, aren't you. You hide behind that expressionless mask of yours… as do you have many associates who cover for you when you need them to."

"Hehhh," the man smiled, stroking his beard again. "Well played good sir. Well played."

"I try my best."

"Well as always, I don't understand. Nor do I think I want to." Kaoru sighed, scratching his scar slightly, a habit he'd never overcome. "Do we still have to go to the meeting?"

"Ah… unfortunately, yes. We do. This was just an informal greeting… I still have to run my company you see…"

Kaoru sighed again, looping his arm in Kyoya's. "Well as I'm sure this'll be explained to me when I'm not jetlagged, why don't you lead the way? It's probably best not to be late to our first meeting."

"But of course!" Adrian turned on his heel neatly, starting to walk off. "I've sent some of my associates to go and collect your baggage for you- I hope you don't mind… I will send it to your hotel."

"Thank you very much, that was very kind of you Mr. Martin."

"Ahh, still so cold Mr. Ootori… I think to be partners in this deal, we should be on first name basis, don't you think?"

Kyoya smiled 'politely'. "I'm sure it'll be adequate to call us by what we've introduced ourselves as."

Adrian sighed. "The younger generation nowadays, no respect for their elders." He shrugged in an 'am I right' way at the driver who obviously had years of experience with the man and simply ignored him, causing Adrian to exhale again. "First Kyo- Mr. Ootori, then Toby… I'll have no friends left by the end of today…"

"Frien-?" Kyoya's irked outburst was clipped short by Kaoru squeezing his hand. Hard.

"He's trying to annoy youuu…"

"I know. And it's working." Kyoya clenched his eyes as if not seeing the man would make him disappear.

"And I can hear you," Adrian grinned.

Kyoya and Kaoru looked up. "We know," was their simultaneous answer before they returned to their previous position.

"…oh…" Adrian frowned before sliding down into his seat in the limo they had arrived in front of.

"You know who he reminds me of?" Kaoru said with a sudden enlightened look as he also sat down in the massive and shiny black car.

Kyoya raised a cynical eyebrow, turning to openly stare at the Brit with distaste. "…who…?"

"Tamaki. A clever, trolling, English Tamaki."

Kyoya's jaw dropped momentarily before snorting. "You're right. I can't believe it. I thought I'd escaped having to talk with that idiot constantly years ago."

"…I can still hear you…"

"I know, that's why I'm saying it." Kyoya combed through his hair with his fingers, not something he did very often in public, or ever really as it was something he did when he was pretty flabbergasted, also not a regular occurrence. "This is…"

"Annoying? Hilarious?"

"A bit of both to be honest."

"Wai-wai-wait. Tamaki? As in… Tamaki of the Suoh kind?"

"The very same."

"…but every source I know has told me that Tamaki Suoh is a serious and very successful businessman… not one to be mocked or taken lightly!"

"Well…" The husbands shared a look. It was kinda true… Tamaki worked pretty damned hard… and he had not only the Ootori's, but Morinozuka , Hitachiin, Mitsukuni (and therefore Nekozawa) formidableness, as well as the independent threat of having world-class lawyers as a wife and godfather to their son (Mori had bagged the place by being the most sane and responsible of the friends, as well as being more than good with kids.) "…I wouldn't go near him if you wanted to keep your life, money, pride…" Kaoru started counting the qualities off with his fingers, indicating for Kyoya to carry on.

"…company, friends, happiness, hair, car, Toby," he waved a hand in a vague manner, as if handing the baton back.

"…cats? Uhm… manga? Uhh…"

Adrian glared at them, squinting slightly. "Is this a game of 'let's name everything we think Adrian owns'?"

"Basically."

"You're mean."

"Nice comeback."

Adrian gave them as best a death glare he could before it dissipated into a sigh, his chin coming to rest in his hand, elbow propped against the car's plush window ledge. "Why am I, an almost 30-something year old man arguing like a kid with people I'm supposed to be having a meeting with?"

"Because you're a big kid?" Kaoru suggested.

"It was a rhetorical question, deary." Adrian smiled sarcastically, watching cars crawl past in the opposite direction, London traffic being horrendously slow at the time of day. "And don't even _try_ giving me that look Mister Ootori. It's an English thing, not a term of endearment or love or whatever."

Kyoya corrected himself slightly, realising that he was moments away from actually snarling. Relieved, he felt a vibration in his pocket, offering escape from the ever circling conversation he felt impending.

Without checking the number to avoid looking precocious, he brought the phone straight to his ear. "Good evening, Ootori Kyoya speaking?" He realised that this was his private phone and thus only friends or family would call it, making him look like a complete idiot to the person down the phone, but what did it matter. He couldn't exactly start a phonecall with: 'Go away you damned Suoh.'

"YAaaaaaaaaaaaaYYAaaAAAAaaA!"

Kyoya winced, his hand instantly retreating so that the source of the high pitched screech was as far away from his ear as humanly possible. He stared at the phone for a second before looking over to where a more than startled Adrian was looking at him wild-eyed. "What the… Did I just hear a squirrel being mutilated or something?"

His heart finally becoming normal again, the black-haired man slowly brought the phone back to his ear whilst explaining that it was actually his sister-in-law. "Although why she's calling me and not her actual brother…" He shrugged at Kaoru. "Ageha? Something wrong?"

"Yaaaayaaaaaa," the girl sobbed, "Kaaniiii!"

"What about him, Ageha, is something wrong?" As he said the words, he realised that Hikaru could be in any stage of danger from non-existent to life-threatening. There really was no way of telling with a child's reactions.

"Mori-nii is eating Kanii!" She hiccupped.

The phone almost dropped, Kyoya not just losing grip on it but on life as well. He saw Kaoru double face-palm out of the corner of his eye before he coughed, frowning. "Ageha… uhm…" He swallowed, trying to find a way of asking this discreetly. "What? Uhm… what is… okay, first, where are you in relation to them?"

"Bedroom!"

"The bedro… Uhm… okay…" Deep breath. "What part of… Uh… Okay, Ageha.. wh-"

"Yaya! Is Mori-nii evil? Is he a mutant robot ninja?"

"no it-" The phone was wrestled out of his hand by an annoyed Kaoru.

"Hey, Age-chan, can you explain to me what's happening?"

"Gao~! Uhm… Ah! Mori-nii came out! He's coming towards me! He's gonna eat me! Gaoo!..." The line went dead.

"Uhhh…" Adrian gulped slightly, trying to show them that yes, he was still here. "Uh… something wrong?" he asked, picking up on the sense of panic, annoyance, anger and fear being emitted.

"Everything's peachy," Kyoya said, regaining his wits. "..this is just a child's misunderstanding isn't it? Mori and Hikaru couldn't… wouldn't have been doing _it _in front of her could they?"

"I don't have a clue… it is my brother after all…" Kaoru scrathed his scar, staring at the phone and biting his lip. "Whose phone was she using?"

"Uhm…" He checked the number. "It's one of Hikaru's mobiles."

"Jeez… " He rung the number and the phone instantly picked up. "Right. What's your excuse."

"Uhm. My most wonderful brother… you do understand that this is another crazy misunderstanding, don't you."

"…She said Mori was 'eating' you, Hikaru."

"Oh. Shit."

"…"

"Oh…. Uh… I mean. Uhhhhhhhhhhh…."

"That's a very nice Uhh you've got there…"

"I'm sorry, okay? I thought she'd gone to bed! It's like midnight here."

"Still! What were you thinking? Well obviously not much, as usual."

"…y'know what this reminds me of?"

"Hikaru, that's probably the least discreet attempt at a topic change I've ever heard."

"It's that time when we convinced Tamaki that m-preg was physically possible."

After a second, Kaoru couldn't help but burst into laughter. "That was indeed hilarious. But why does this situation remind you of that?" Tamaki, naïve at the best of times, hadn't understood that a fangirl's mind could even create something so… well… strange. So it had only taken a light pestering from the twins to convince him that it was a real occurrence, albeit rare.

"Uhmm…. I dunno, just the topic of sex and the like. Brought up fond memories."

"Ugh. Hikaru…. Can you like…"

"What? Grow up? Stop being so indecent?"

"Yes."

"No. Have a fun trip."

"Hika-" Too late. He'd hung up. "Such an idiot."

"Uhm… well I'm sorry to interrupt such an… uh… important? Uh… personal phone call, but we have arrived."

Kyoya took back the phone, turning it off and dropping it in his inside blazer pocket. "Mr. Martin. One second if you please," he said in a cool, cold tone, stopping the man from stepping out of the door being opened for him.

"Uh…" A bead of sweat appeared on his forehead as a sudden sensation of being a mouse hunted by an owl came over him, making him retract his foot and resume his seated position. "Yes?"

"…Of course, you understand that anything you may have overheard just now is not to be repeated, don't you." He smiled, his eyes hidden by the bars of light reflected off of his glasses. "Don't you," he asserted again imperatively.

_Damn. This kid's got a scary aura. Probably best not to anger him. Play it nice, Adrian, now's not the time to be the joker,_ he told himself as he gulped. "Of course. I.. uh… I think I can guess the repercussions of not listening to your… 'advice'."

"Good. Right. After you, then," he said, not retracting even the slightest bit of scariness to show he was NOT in the mood for games.

Kaoru sighed, he head aching slightly, but as he looked up at the area they were in, all previous thoughts banished. He didn't know what part of London they were in, but it was stunning. Simplistic, modern, maybe even futuristic-looking glass structures seemed to be growing out the ground in between the old, sand coloured brick ones, possibly made all the more beautiful because of their imperfections and slightly crumbling walls. Within a second of stepping out of the vehicle, he had pulled out the mini-sketchbook he brought with him everywhere and was already using the well-used pencil to dump all of the ideas that had hit him. He doubted whether any of these would look good after the initial dumping had happened, but it didn't hurt to write them down.

Of course, he had been to London plenty of times, but it was something about this area… it wasn't one of the high-end places he frequented, a concrete jungle similar to everywhere else in the western world; it was… if not 'quaint' then attractive. Charming.

Looking over his husband's shoulder at the flurry of action, Kyoya smiled. This was what he had planned all those years ago. This is what he wanted. Finally, things might go right.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** :3 Not much to say today… life's not been too great (if you want to know, you can check my journal on deviantart (link on meh profile)) But yeah, I'm trying not to let it affect everyone else :)


	31. Shakespeare's ghost

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ouran high school host club.

**Chapter 31: Shakespeare's ghost**

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><p>The meeting hadn't exactly been… well… amazingly productive. After listening to around ten minutes of inane drivel, Kyoya's thoughts had returned to his brother's phone call, leading to him spending the rest of the time tapping a pen against his lip, nodding occasionally when he thought it was needed. Kaoru had been reduced to the same state, but instead of thinking, he shut down his brain completely, surreptitiously scribbling in his sketchbook. Even Adrian seemed to be on the verge of sleep, his bouncy enthusiasm drained by the dull boardroom. Apparently this meeting had been organised so that they could meet one another, (despite Kyoya having met all of them before and Adrian being the stalker that he was,) as well as give boring PowerPoint presentations on the benefits of the possible unity of the companies involved.<p>

Kaoru sighed into the bed, smiling blissfully. "If there's one thing that can beat my love for you, it's my love for this bed at the moment."

Kyoya laughed slightly, his eyes flicking to look at the reflection of his husband in the window he was looking through before they returned to the green garden below. "Good morning to you too," he grinned, loosening his tie. "Or should I say 'good afternoon'? It's…" He pulled his sleeve up slightly to check his watch. "Already two thirty seven, and you're still in bed."

"Half two?" Despite his lingering lethargy, he sat up in shock.

Kyoya nodded. "It's been a _very _long time since I've had to attempt to wake you up… And as you can see, it wasn't a successful one."

"But two thirty? That's…" He frowned. "I've never been this jetlagged before."

"Maybe it's just your body trying to catch up on all of the all-nighters you've put it through."

"…hmm… maybe…" Kaoru scratched his head, yawning slightly. "….so then where were you?"

"Another meeting with those idiots. I don't see why they feel it's so important to inform me of… whatever they were trying to inform me. And that Steven Jot guy… he seriously needs to invest in some sort of articulation training. Ageha… even Natsume can speak better English than him."

Kaoru's bright laugh was only broken by yet another yawn.

"Right mister," Kyoya turned on his heel from the view outside, "up and at 'em."

"Ehh? But… I wouldn't mind spending a couple more hours just… lying… here…" Kaoru slid back down under the covers, burying his face in the soft plush of the duvet.

"Nope." Kyoya grinned as he lifted up the duvet with a flourish, letting the cool bedroom air diminish the warmth given out by the bed. "We have an hour to get ready before our final meeting. Then we are rid of these goons and can start seriously planning with the wonderful Mister Green." To an untrained ear, the last three words had not changed in tone or pitch to convey contempt or anything else untoward- it was the voice the raven-haired man used to handle the press so that they could not leech hidden meanings obviously there, as they were able to do with others in similar situations- rich partners not one hundred per cent convinced that the other was quite the brilliant person presented as being.

"Wait… you mean these meetings aren't the important ones? I thought we could go home after today if we so wished." Sombrely he had begun swapping his night clothes for a suit but paused, halfway through doing up a button, to stare up at Kyoya, waiting for the answer he dreaded- having to sit through yet **more** meetings.

Kyoya noted the weary tone of his counterpart. "No… these are just the preliminary ones- the skin of the metaphorical onion. We have yet to peel away the many layers surrounding the heart."

Kaoru raised an eyebrow, resuming his work on the buttons with a small frown. "Oh aye? That sounds like delicious yet eye watering work…" He then smiled, pleased that he was able to follow up the metaphor. "And be there reason for the sudden poetic nature of your speech?"

"Aye sir!" Kyoya bowed in a princely fashion, one knee almost brushing the floor, grinning a cat-like smile. "It must be the ghost of Shakespeare himself, possessing me with his speech since we are so near the Globe theatre itself."

"A ghost you say? Sounds more like the drink to me… tell me, have you been out to the pub?"

"No, sir! I am as sober as a… soberman! I am as dry as a rock! I am as… undrunk as a full glass of water!"

"….riiiiiight…." Kaoru snorted, doing the last button before striding towards the half-crouched man. "Well then, Mister Shakespeare, it has been nice meeting you, but be vanquished. I would rather have my husband back if you please, be him intoxicated or not."

"No sir that I cannot do! I must continue with this tomfoolery!"

Kaoru laughed, combing his hair back with the finger of one hand. "Whatever shall I do? My hero is overrun by a foul ghost! He has been rendered completely out of character!"

It was then that Kyoya pounced, effectively pinning the slighter man under him when they fell to the bed. "Alas, what can the fair maiden do? The wronged hero has been tainted…" He reached down and bit lightly on Kaoru's neck.

With monumental effort, Kaoru kept on his sardonic mask, eyebrow raised at Kyoya's actions. He bit his lip until he thought his voice steady enough to answer. "When did I get downgraded from a sir to a maiden, eh?" A smile started to rise, but his kept his teeth firmly gritted to stop any unwanted sounds from escaping.

"Downgrading? No, no…" Kyoya gave him a satisfied smirk, biting down again.

Kaoru tried to cover his small moan by letting out a disgruntled "hey!" He waited until Kyoya smiled again before he uttered any more words. "The… meeting?"

Kyoya's face returned to normality for an instant, barely even a flash, before the cat-like, predatory glare returned.

* * *

><p>Kyoya awoke with a start when he felt that he and Kaoru were not the only ones in the room. From the light streaming in through the window, not much time could've passed since… since... well. Taking his time, he slowly sat up before putting on his glasses and glaring at the man standing with an innocent smile at the end of the bed.<p>

"I thought you said you were going to wake him up?"

"Yes, well… we got a little… distracted."

"I can see…" Adrian stroked his beard, glancing at the sleeping body in the not-so-pristine covers, then to the floor where various items of clothing lay.

Kyoya sat up slightly more, crossing his arms over his bare chest- not an act of embarrassment but entirely opposite- trying to relay that he was not at all awkward about having an audience, especially after the amount of times… well Tamaki and Hikaru weren't exactly used to the idea of 'privacy' . "I can't say I'm surprised that you're standing there, although it does make me reminisce over the SP I used to have…" He sighed, his head resting against the suitably named headboard.

Adrian grinned, although what about, Kyoya wasn't sure. "Oh- I covered for you at the meeting. Said you had to take an urgent phone call regarding the Ootori business…"

Kyoya sighed again. "Great." What a way to stir up rumours. 'Urgent' connoted the collapse of the Ootoris- a thought he didn't even want to consider the moment.

"Oh my, was that ungratefulness I picked up?" Adrian raised a mocking eyebrow, sitting down on the end of the bed.

"Of course not, dearest associate. What would ever give you that impression…" He met Adrian's eye, and the atmosphere seemed to spark with hidden tension, as if the mutual smugness, bitterness and animosity caused friction, easily able to light the air. Then suddenly all the sparks were gone. Each appraised the other, before a sort-of-respect crept in. Neither had met another who could hold their worst stare without even the barest flinch, so this was new. And admirable.

Adrian seemed on the cusp of saying something but changed his mind. "I came to extend an invitation to dinner- which still stands, if young master Hitachiin is feeling… able enough." He flashed a knowing smile, his hand resuming the beard-stroke.

Kyoya looked down at the sleeping mass. "I'm sure we would love to attend. Wouldn't we."

Kaoru smiled. "Of course. Although I was looking forward to having a nice, long sleep… however since my cover is blown, I guess I have no choice in the matter."

Adrian jumped slightly, giving Kyoya a small ounce of pleasure, as if he had won something- an unspoken competition perhaps. "Oh. Ah. I hadn't realised you were awake… or perhaps I woke you? My sincerest apologies either way…"

Kaoru turned from lying on his side to his back but kept his eyes closed. He raised a hand lazily as a small greeting. "Doooooon't worry… I think I've slept a fair amount of the day away anyway."

"Good… well. I hope to see you later." Adrian turned on his heel and let his feet take him to the door as swiftly as they were able to. "My car will be waiting for you outside at 8," he said, already halfway through it. He turned for a final, sweet smile. "I apologise for not greeting you with a handshake earlier, but… you never know where it's been, eh?" He closed the door as swiftly as possible, then let out a relieved sigh. Kyoya's cold glare was hard enough to handle, but added with Kaoru's nonchalant and unreadable emotions, the duo were definitely not easily trifled with.

"Right. So." Adrian shifted in his seat. The two before him seemed to be plotting something, but whatever it was, they weren't about to tell. They were going to leech every second of his uncomfortableness. "Where were we?" He asked, pushing the empty pudding bowl away from him so that he had an area to spread his hands on the table.

Kyoya's satisfied smiled deepened. "Well, first off I have a simple question." He paused, allowing Adrian to give him assent. "What, exactly, are you hiring us to do?"

"Well… to be honest, I hadn't really thought that much through."

Kaoru sighed. Exactly as Kyoya had predicted.

"Oh? You don't seem surprised…" Adrian raised an eyebrow, though not exactly sounding so himself.

"Yes… well... you're not exactly the most… trust-worthy man I've ever met."

"Ooh, cutting words there, Kyo-Ootori-san."

Ignoring the comment, Kyoya placed his black notebook on the restaurant table in silence.

"Fine." Adrian had started to get bored of the lack of reaction he was getting. He delved into his briefcase, his hand bringing out a similar sized book, although not quite so ominous looking. He crossed one leg over the over, leaning back in his chair as he flicked through the pages. Sighing, he stopped at a page and scribbled something down. Then he flicked a few pages back, read something quickly, then went back to scribbling.

Kyoya and Kaoru raised an eyebrow at one another, taking in the sudden industrial nature.

"Right." He closed the book with a sharp snap. "So."

"So."

"As you know, my company isn't the most… well-known one. And I want to keep it that way. However, I would very much like to work in association with you… what with having to sit through all those meetings already…" Since he had opened the book, the usually joyful expression had slipped, replaced with one so businessman-like, it was pretty unbelievable. Almost like he was a different person. "So how's about this. I will set up a new company, a…" He looked around, as if trying to find inspiration. "…a restaurant chain? Catering company? ….host club?" The last two words were slow and said with added meaning, but the serious face never slipped. "I'll give you complete control over it- of course, 60% of the profits would be mine, after you prove to me that this is a worthwhile deal." He paused, waiting for questions.

Kyoya frowned. "Right. And what do you intend for us to do?" Mulling it over, it wasn't exactly a bad deal, but it wasn't the best fish in the sea.

"Well I assume you've already got a good working plan, right? You're… what, 6 years out of school? 2 out of uni?" He shrugged, not actually knowing the answer. "We'll have better, more in-depth discussions should you choose to accept. But first we must talk abo-" He suddenly stopped, frowning, one ear perked. "Is that your phone?"

Kyoya had been choosing to ignore it, but now that attention was drawn to the ringing, he had no choice. Slipping it out of his pocket, he scowled at the number, promptly standing. "..Excuse me. I have to take this call." He stared ruefully at the chair before he meandered through the busy restaurant, heading towards the door.

Adrian wasn't sure whether to let his cool smile back, but he eventually decided against it. "Know who that was?"

"…" Kaoru turned back to consider Adrian. For all his annoyances, he didn't seem… horrible. "Our darling brother. The eldest Ootori." The way he said it implied that no further questions would be answered, so the Englishman simply waved a waitress over and ordered them both some coffee.

"Ootori the eldest, eh…"

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** …I'm sorry I'm such a wuss, but this is about as raunchy as this story will get XDD Jeez I was embarrassed to write even this much… -_-"" Sleazy jokes? Any day. Sleazy scenes? *freezes and turns to dust*


	32. What!

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ouran high school host club.

**Chapter 32: What?**

Kyoya coughed once to clear his throat before he pressed the green 'answer' button. "Good evening."

"Kyoya." His voice was hard and cold. "Have you seen?"

His brow furrowed. _This again?_ "Seen what?"

"The stocks. They've gone down again."

"What?" Surprise made his voice sound like it had more emotion than he had wanted to convey. He took out his tablet, tapped on it before reading the red script. "Down by 30%... that's… that's not possible." The -0.6% from before was nothing compared to this.

"Father is in uproar. You need to come home now. No exceptions."

"But..." He trailed off as he heard the phone line die. He stared at it blankly for an almost full minute before he shook himself. "This isn't possible." He checked three (reliable) news websites. All of them screamed the title: 'Ootori Company in biggest decline for centuries'. He knew it was unlikely, but he phoned his father. His suspicions were confirmed. No answer. The line was busy. Then he tried his other brother. Still nothing. Then Tamaki. Nothing. He guessed the Suoh company would be just as caught up in this as they were. Whatever 'this' was. But maybe…

"Hello?" The voice was slightly groggy and had the edge to it that conveyed exhaustion. "Kyoya? This is your business line right? What's wrong?"

"Ah. Haruhi. Brilliant. I'm sorry to wake you at this time… it must be in the middle of the night."

"No, no… I was awake, Natsume's still one for 3am starts… plus Tamaki…"

"Tamaki?" He noticed the slight hesitance on the name.

"Yes… well… I'm sure you know." There was a small wail and she made a shushing sound.

"For once I don't think I do." Kyoya rubbed the bridge of his nose. He probably sounded as tired as she did. "I've seen about the stocks but…"

"The stocks? I think that's the last thing you've got to worry about." She sounded so well versed in this speak, so confident unlike her teenage self. She was the Suoh's main lawyer and had to think big. It wasn't easy having to look after a large company like theirs.

"…What do you mean," he asked tentatively. He could feel the pangs of a headache coming on already.

"…Kyoya… I don't know if I can… it's not my place. At least let me go and get Tamaki."

"I've known you almost as long as him, and frankly I think I know who I can trust more…" He heard the unsure pause. "…please…"

There was a hefty sigh as Haruhi sat down. "Your father."

"What about him?"

"…Aparenltly… he… he told your brothers and Tamaki that he…" another very unsure pause. "I'm sorry to say this but... he has cancer."

Kyoya's heart leapt from his chest.

"I'm sorry, that really wasn't the subtlest… way…" Haruhi sounded as if she was going to kick herself.

Kyoya cleared his throat. A frog seemed to have leaped down it. "No… no. Sorry, I'm… I'm okay Haruhi. It's fine." He frowned, staring at the wall in front of him as if it had become the most interesting thing in the world. He had seen so many people being told that their loved one… their partner, parent… even child had cancer before. He had even, on occasion, been the one to deal the news. But he didn't think it would ever happen to them. To him.

"Kyoya… where's Kaoru?"

"He's…uhm…" He coughed again. "Inside. The restaurant."

"Go to him, Kyoya. Go and tell him." Her voice was tinted with pleading. He knew that this man was much more brittle than he presented himself as being.

"I will… I just… I need to phone some people… Uhm… did Tamaki tell you why our stocks have fallen?"

"No, I'm afraid nobody knows. I don't think they do anyway. They better not. I'm supposed be representing them, but that fool of a husband doesn't tell me anything in case it 'harms my chances'. Harms my chances! The bloody cheek! He still thinks of me as his little girl, I swear. It makes everything twenty times harder. He even hides his cheque book near my birthday! A whole month where I can't organise myself and… and… I'm rambling, I'm sorry… Go on, now. Go and tell Kaoru and… I don't know, hug him or something."

Kyoya wanted to smile at the distraction, but he couldn't bring himself to. "Yeah… I'll go do that. Thank you, Haruhi, for telling me."

"No problem at all… at least you answer me properly when I talk to you… not in baby speak like Natsume… or even Tamaki. Ugh." She tried to laugh as light-heartedly as she could.

Kyoya exhaled, his lip twitching slightly into a smile. "Thank you again, little commoner… now go back to your silly husband and silly child. Go on."

"I guess I'll see you soon… give him a hug from me too."

"I shall do that. Later, Haruhi." He hung up, his smile growing slightly. "Commoner indeed." He pushed the phone into his pocket, tapping his chin. Then he took a deep breath of crisp, evening air and returned into the clatter of the restaurant. He made a beeline for the pair he could see sitting in their own thoughts, then hugged Kaoru from behind.

Surprised, Kaoru let out a small grunt. "Kyoya?" He was squeezed harder. "What's wrong?"

"Quite a lot." Kyoya whispered into his ear. He squeezed for a moment longer before he relinquished the younger man. He looked to Adrian. "I'm sorry, a family problem has come up. I wish to convey my deepest apologies, but unfortunately our deal might have to be on hold." He bit his lip in thought. "Indefinitely."

"What?" Kaoru, who had tilted his head back slightly to see Kyoya, now turned around fully, his eyes wide. What the hell could've happened to have made Kyoya say something as permanent as that? He always liked to have an open-ended deal so that he could easily latch onto it when the chance came.

Adrian seemed to be going thought the same thought process. His exclamation of "What" echoed Kaoru's, though he seemed more worried about the deal than the 'crisis'.

"I'll call you later, Mister Green."

A complaint made his lips move, but Adrian didn't voice it. "Fine," he said with a seemingly whimsical shrug. "I guess we'll talk about it at a more convenient time."

"Thank you for your understanding." As he and Kaoru stood, a waiter came over with their coats. "Thank you, can you call a taxi for us please?" He asked.

"No need, I'll take you wherever you need to go." Adrian sighed as he stood, taking his coat from the waiter. "The bill can go on my regular card," he told the man. He was obviously familiar with him as he nodded before smiling and giving his thanks for his continuing patronage.

Kyoya frowned but accepted. He had wanted to speak to Kaoru privately, but it wouldn't do to reject the offer, abuse the xenia, the brilliant Greek idea of guest-host relationship that he had taken to following, being shown. "Thank you."

"You're very welcome. What kind of host would I be if I sent my guests off in a commoner's vehicle?"

Kaoru raised an eyebrow as they left an eyebrow and got into the waiting limo. He had assumed that Adrian had been a working man who'd made his way up the business chain, what with his family name being one he hadn't actually heard of before. Seeing this, Adrian smirked.

"What's this? I think Mister Hitachiin here believes that I myself am one of the commoners. Well I'm not one to disappoint, and I have to admit that you're right. Although not particularly poor ones of course."

Kyoya wasn't too taken aback having researched into this, but he was still curious. "So you started with neither money nor power. Quite an achievement, I must say."

"What can I say?" Adrian bowed as best he could whilst sitting down. "I'm just brilliant in every way."

"Well I guess nobody can accuse you of riding on your parent's coattails…"

"I can say the same of you two! The both of you made it very public that you were starting from scratch…"

"But we'll never know if that was true. We always knew there'd be the lingering traces of our parents… People would be scared of _not _wanting to deal with us in case we 'told' on them. Threatened them." Kyoya sighed. It had definitely been a hard task to finally stand in the sunlight, away from his father's shadow. With a pang, he realised something. His face looked like a storm cloud had just descended on it, but, not wanting to show Adrian, he hastily wiped it off.

Not wanting to anger him, Adrian didn't say that he'd already seen the look and his eye flicked to the gloomy world speeding past outside. "I guess everyone has their own problems."

"Mhmm."

Safely away from prying eyes, in the comfort of their hotel room, Kyoya practically glomped the smaller man.

"Mmff!" Nearly knocked to the floor, Kaoru gripped onto Kyoya's sleeves for dear life. "You almost gave me a heart attack!"

"That one was from Haruhi. Combined with another one from me." He pulled the man as close to him as he could, burying his face in the dyed hair.

"Kyo? What's wrong eh? What's wrong?" He asked soothingly, patting the back of his head. "C'mon… it's alright… it's okay…" After a couple of minutes, the hold on him changed from being a desperate grab to a comforted one.

"Sorry…sorry… I just need…"

"Take your time, Kyoya. You know I'm right here…"

"Mmhm…"

Kaoru's eyes suddenly widened as he felt something drip down his neck. "Are you crying?"

"…" Kyoya sniffed faintly but didn't pull away.

Deflating slightly, Kaoru sighed. "…is it your brother? Surely not… the stocks? Has something happened to them?" He paused for assent, but got nothing. "What, Kyoya? I can't help unless I know… and I haven't known anything for a while…" He kept any annoyance out of his tone.

Drawing a harsh breath, Kyoya froze. "Oh god."

"What?"

"You sounded like how Haruhi talked about Tamaki. Do I really act like Tamaki?"

Kaoru snorted, thwacking him on the head. "Fool. Don't scare me like that."

"Heh…sorry…"

"You're apologizing too much. It's scary."

"Sorry."

"Oi."

Kyoya grinned slightly, though Kaoru couldn't see it.

"So you were talking to our darling sister-in-law?"

"Yes."

"And…?"

"Father has cancer."

The sudden reply caused the words to sink in twice… thrice as slow. The mood in the room turned much darker, mirrored by the lack of light coming through the undrawn curtains. "Oh." _What a pathetic reply. What else do I say?_

"Oh indeed."

Kyoya felt like he was about to topple, so, taking advantage of the loosened grip, Kaoru dragged him to the bed and sat him down. "Uhm. What kind? How… how…"

"How long? I don't know. I don't know the answer to either. I assume… I don't know what I assume. I can't think. I just don't know anymore. Ugh. This is not a nice feeling." He took off his glasses to wipe them, but gave up, chucking them on the bed next to him.

"How… why didn't they tell you?" Kaoru frowned. It wasn't like their family was small or out of reach- both of Kyoya's brothers had wives, Kyoya's parents has brothers and sisters as well as personal aids; there was no reason for being left out of the loop.

"I don't know. Maybe they wanted to keep it private. Although how Tamaki came to find out.." He shrugged, then lay back on the bed, his forearm across his eyes.

"Private? And you don't count as being a close member in that privacy? I thought he liked us!"

"He does… he thinks you're a close second to Haruhi, but me… me he's not too sure about."

"I'm sure he lov-likes you the same as the rest of your brothers. Probably even more… what's that thing that old people like? 'Spunk'? You've got plenty of spunk!"

"I think it's my spunk he _doesn't _like, what with being the third son and all. I'm supposed to be subservient, not sell him his own company." He laughed. That had been fun.

"But it showed you were a good businessman right? A great one!"

"Yeah well… it showed I was a crappy brother and son too."

"Well stuff them then. Stuff them all."

"I can't really, can I. He's always there, ruining everything."

"Hmm?"

"My life has always been about my father!"

"What do you mean?"

"When I was born, I had to serve my father. Always in his shadow. Respect him, adore him, listen to him. And then I create my own… our own company, we're doing well. We're away. And suddenly WAM he has cancer! I wonder who's going to be stuck looking after him? Certainly not Yuuichi. Nor Akito."

"What about Fuyumi-nee?"

"She's busy. She always is."

"Too busy to care for her own father?"

"…no… but…"

"C'mon Kyoya, you don't have to take every burden upon yourself. You have me, plus…" he raised an eyebrow. "Can you not remember what your family business is? It's not like you have no resources. He WILL have the best of the best to do the best job they can."

"…but when that's not enough?"

"Then life goes on. It's your stubborn family gene; he ain't going to roll over just yet. He still has to pick which of you is his favourite."

"Maybe he has. Maybe that's why I'm still in England, and my dearest brother is harassing me."

Kaoru frowned, not following. "But surely Yuuichi would take this opportunity to taunt you? Even if he knows you don't actually WANT the company?"

"Exactly. Maybe he wasn't the chosen one."

"But then… wouldn't he be trying to get you on his side? To antagonise Akito-nii?"

Kyoya bit his lip. "But Akito-nii was… more than happy in following Yuuichi. He was trying to convince ME not to bid for the inheritance. He says that we have to be loyal underlings."

"Right…?"

"So what if Yuuichi is trying to poke and prod me… try and provoke me into doing something completely stupid. Which Akito would hate. Then they would be teamed up against me."

Kaoru sighed. "You're just being paranoid. Don't worry so much about it- everything's going to be fine. Your father will probably live a full, long life, then choose Yuuichi to succeed him, and life will be perky."

"Maybe."

Kaoru reached for his hand, giving it a squeeze as he fell back on the bed. "I'll order some tickets home in the morning. Just have a nice, long sleep and don't worry about it."

"…I'll try." He smiled. "Thanks."

**A/N:** Late as always -_-" /shot

And ill. Once again -_- *le sigh*


	33. SPLURGE

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ouran high school host club.

**Chapter 33: Once again, this chapter is so mundane. And I have no title naming sense, so here. Have a splurge. SPLURGE!**

* * *

><p>Kyoya got up with a lot more regret than usual. His usually darkly bagged eyes were, this morning, emphasised by the redness of the 'whites'. He ruefully opened them, flinching as the pain caused by the daylight harpooned its way into his brain. He groaned, rolled over, then groaned again as he realised it didn't help at all. In fact he had turned so that he was now facing the window. As if to close the curtains with magic, he punched the air half-heartedly in the general direction of the window. To his delight, it seemed to have worked as the room was plunged into a dull, evening-like darkness.<p>

"mffmsmmm…" He hoped his nonsensical mumble would convey his gratitude to whatever had darkened the room.

"You're very welcome." The voice sounded familiar to Kyoya, but he couldn't quite pinpoint it. It was slightly too deep, too foreign to be Kaoru… a bit more masculine than Tamaki… not quite as rich as Takashi… and very, very British. He groaned again, his brain not liking what it had connected.

"Not you again…" His still-balled fist lightly kneaded his forehead before he worked up the courage to open his eyes, squinting at the silhouette by the window. "Don't you have any sense of privacy?" Once again, he remembered Kaoru's comparison between Adrian and Tamaki. It was dead on. Invading his bedroom in the mornings had been an on-going tradition for Tamaki, even after both of them had married.

"Not an ounce. I like watching people sleep. It's oh-so-interesting…" Adrian sounded distant; not turning around from the view from the window.

"Does your stalkerishness know no bounds?" He could feel the black tendrils slip out, chilling the air to ice.

"Not at all." The Englishman seemed oblivious to the sudden coolness, keeping a level voice. "It's a nice view you've got here… you can just about see all of the best parts of London."

"That's why I chose it." He realised that his glare would apparently only affect him (and his lack of effort) so he ceased it, opting to rub his eyes instead, rejoicing at the darkness behind his eyelids.

"Hmm?" The mumble was curious, asking for his reasoning.

"Only the best for my darling husband…" Kyoya yawned, snuggling into the pillow.

"Sweet."

"I know."

Adrian sniffed slightly, then turned around to stare at the bed, sitting himself down in a wicker seat by the window and crossing one leg over another, his eyes never leaving the black-haired man.

"Is there something on my face?"

Slightly confused, Adrian frowned. "No, I don't think so, why?"

"Oh nothing, I was just wondering if you have any specific reason for staring at me. Other than the obvious of course."

Sitting back in his chair, Adrian nodded with understanding, ever so slightly displeased that he had fell into such an old joke. "I'm rather intrigued as to what you think is 'the obvious'." He drummed his fingers against his knee absentmindedly.

"Obviously, it's my stunning good looks."

"Oh? And would your husband be pleased at your blatant flirting?"

"Believe me. This is as far away from flirting as physically possible."

"Hm."

"Why?"

"Why what."

"Why do you wonder if I, a happily married man, am flirting with you, a man I clearly despise?"

"…despise is such a harsh word…"

"Avoiding the question?"

"Yes."

"Right..." Kyoya noticed for the first time that there must be a clock somewhere in the room… he could hear the rhythmic tick, loud in the silence.

Adrian shifted slightly, but still his gaze didn't waver. "So I hear you're leaving for Japan in a few hours."

"A few hours? I guess I am… did Kaoru tell you that?"

"Yes, I passed him on the stairs when I came in about half an hour ago. I was quite perplexed as to your, plural, sleeping patterns."

"Mmm. Usually it's me who likes the lie ins. Yesterday was the exception."

"Really? I wouldn't have put you down as the type of person who liked being late for things."

"I'm never late," Kyoya said with a tone of finality. "I make effective use of my time."

"Right. Sorry. Of course you do."

Another silent pause, more seconds ticked past. "My question still stands."

"Which one?"

"Either."

Adrian sighed slowly, as if he was wasting time on purpose. "I'm here to try and convince you not to go home, close the deal et cetera et cetera."

"I can't do that."

"Hmmm. Family problems?"

"What of it."

"So you choose family over business? Interesting…"

Kyoya reached for his glasses, rubbing his eyes once more before he put them on. "Who wouldn't?"

"A heartless bastard?"

Kyoya's eyebrows raised sharply, his head turning towards Adrian. "And you think I'm a heartless bastard?"

"Well…"

"Wow. I guess 'despise' wasn't too harsh a word."

"Now, now. Don't be like that…"

"I'm allowed to. I'm a 'heartless bastard'." Sitting up slowly, Kyoya realised why he had been so uncomfortable. He obviously hadn't been bothered to undress after sinking onto the bed yesterday and was still in his suit, although he had taken off his jacket at some point. "So. Question two?"

"I was staring at you because I was wondering."

"...about?"

"How similar… actually the opposite. How different you are to… someone I know."

"…Are you going to tell me who that 'someone' is?"

"I couldn't possibly. Highly confidential and all that…"

"I thought as much. Right then. Now that you've had your stare and got your answer, do you have another motive for being here?"

"…Fiiine…" Adrian sighed, standing up and stretching slightly, letting out a small grunt as he did. "Problem with getting old and all that," he muttered, almost to himself. "And you're absolutely sure you're going back to Japan? You don't want to be in business with the brilliant me?"

"…If our matter is resolved swiftly, which I highly doubt, then yes, I would be very keen on doing business with you, what with having wasted many precious hours of my life in meetings with our 'partners'."

Adrian sucked his teeth, walking to the door. "Well I guess that's something… It was a pleasure doing business with you," he said sardonically. "But I won't keep you any longer, I have Lewis to watch."

"Another associate? You should really stop these scary habits of yours…"

"No, no. It's a TV show. Called Inspector Lewis. You should watch it sometime."

"I see. I'll… look into it." _What the heck is this man on about?_ "Goodbye Mr. Green."

"Oh!" Adrian was halfway through letting himself out before he turned and smiled. "Wish your spouse a happy birthday from me, will you?"

His heart skipped a beat and, in a spurt of panic, Kyoya's mind started to speed. Had he forgotten Kaoru's birthday? He hastily checked the calendar, but paused when it read '4th June'.

"I meant on the day, of course… seeing as you most likely won't be here and all." If at some point Adrian had started to smile, it was now eclipsed by a satisfied smirk. "Have a beautiful day!" he said cheerily, waving as he shut the door behind him.

"Son of a…"

* * *

><p>Kaoru peeked at him from behind his newspaper, simultaneously sipping at a coffee. "Should I have not let him in?" He blinked 'innocently', his smile saying that he would've let Adrian in anyway.<p>

Refusing to pout, Kyoya frowned. "Do I really look that bad? Or angry?"

"Uhm… Yes. To both of those. Sorry… was he bad?"

"Sort of… But to be fair… I have literally only just woken up. And you know me…"

"Ah… I did warn him that you weren't a great early bird, especially after your rough night and all. But he insisted on waiting, and I was hungry so I let him in whilst I ate my breakfast." He grinned, indicating his empty plate. "Jeez this place makes beautiful eggy bread."

Kyoya laughed slightly. "How can you always be so cheery in the morning?"

"Coffee. Coffee helps a lot. Something you taught me wise master." Kaoru nodded at the pot beside him and poured another cup of the black liquid, passing it to Kyoya who took a sip and smiled.

_Definitely helps. A lot._ "A few years ago, the simple idea of a Hitachiin on caffeine would've summarised my nightmares."

"Hey! We're not _that _bad."

"Well… I'd hate to disagree with you but… I don't think I ever want to even think about a 16-year-old Hikaru fuelled on coffee."

Kaoru winced slightly. "Yeah… that… that wasn't a great experience. Didn't help that he thought he needed a whole country's worth of sugar and cream in it to make it 'edible' either."

"Oh good grief, that sounds vile."

"It was. I had one try and… blegh." He stuck a finger in his mouth in the traditional retching mime.

"Wow. That's… a beautiful thought to have at…" Kyoya suddenly realised that he hadn't the faintest idea what time it was, so checked his watch. "11:39? Well that's a little later than I expected…"

"11:39?" Abandoning his paper and coffee cup, Kaoru shot up, his chair screeched against the floor as he did. "Up! We need to get ready."

Kyoya did as he was told and followed after the not-quite-so-red-head. "Are we going to be late for the plane?" he asked, not really worried about missing it (they could easily get another) but rather that he would be proving his earlier statement wrong, and that because he had slept in, he was going to be late.

"Huh? Oh… no, probably not. I just wanted to have enough time to pack before we leave."

Kyoya raised an eyebrow. "…and what time DO we leave?"

"Well the plane's at 4, so ideally, we should get to the airport at about 2…"

"Then we have plenty of time." Kyoya smiled, slowing the pace down. "The airport's a maximum of 30 minutes away… we have about 3 hours. What's the rush anyway?"

"Well… the quicker we pack, the longer we get to spend having… a walk or something."

"A walk? Since when have we gone on walks?" Kyoya's tone was incredulous but interested.

"Well… we haven't. So maybe we should try. What with the English scenery being all nice and green and all." Kaoru was making up excuses, and Kyoya knew it. Kaoru hated to be late for anything, and always needed to know that he was prepared. Planning was essential.

He pretended to stroke an imaginary beard, then grinned. "I like it. Yes. We'll do that then. Let's go for a walk."

Taken aback slightly, Kaoru frowned. "You do know we're in London right? A busy, bustling city… and I was kind of joking about the walk…"

"Yeah well, I'm not. C'mon."

"I wish I had been joking about that walk."

* * *

><p>In the traditional British way, it hadn't just started to rain, but a full thunder storm had rolled in just as they were furthest away from their hotel. Expecting (like fools) that the summer sun would stay in the blue sky all day, Kyoya and Kaoru had gone for their walk without jackets or umbrellas, and were now drenched from head to toe.<p>

Kaoru shivered slightly, clinging closer to his husband to share the measly amount of body heat they had at the moment. Even that didn't help much. The bus shelter they were under was deserted, and it was near on impossible to see through the sheet of water crashing down in front of them. "Yep. I'm with you one that one." He shook his head with disbelief. "How did… how could… I mean… I'm pretty sure it was blue skies all round when we left."

"It was." Kyoya looked up at the sky now, a drop of rain sliding from his hair and onto his face, making a trail down his cheek, only able to happen because he had removed his glasses as they proved annoying/useless in the weather. "But apparently the clouds move fast in this country." When they had left, there was only a barely visible puff of black in the distant horizon, yet it had only taken 30 minutes before the heavens opened. Carefully wiping his free hand on a slightly-less-damp area of clothing, he took out his phone and dialled the hotel.

Kaoru sighed, staring at his watch. "We're going to have to go straight to the airport and get changed there, aren't we."

"Hello… yes, it's Kyoya Ootori. I sent our bags off to the airport earlier? Yes, that's right, Heathrow. Great, thank you." Pause. "Would it be possible to ask for another favour? Thank you. We're under the bus shelter on… Bruton street. Ahaha. Yes. Caught by the rain. Yes. Very funny. Ahahaha." He made his laugh as genuine as possible. "Thank you very much. Yes. Thanks. Bye." As he re-placed his phone in his pocket, he called the receptionist a string of vulgar names, cursing the British sense of 'humour', the British weather, the British accent… and everything else British. Satisfied, he tilted his head slightly to Kaoru. "Our ride will be here momentarily."

Kaoru raised an eyebrow slightly. "Wow… I didn't think you were this affected by… well… anything really."

"Yeah… well…" He closed his eyes, listening to the sound of the rain drumming down drown out the busy road behind them.

"It's fine… I understand."

"I know you do." Kyoya smiled, tightening his grip on Kaoru's arm as if it were the only thing keeping him from dropping through the world.

There was a comfortable, peaceful silence for a while before they noticed the presence of a large black vehicle behind them. They got in, thankful for the warmth and general non-wetness.

"And that was our first experience of business in England." Kaoru sighed, leaning back on the sofa.

* * *

><p>"So much for a world tour, eh?" Hikaru grinned, bracing himself for the inevitable punch he knew his brother would throw at him. "Okay, sorry!" He said with an 'unf,' the hit landing hard and straight.<p>

Kaoru frowned, but with one look from his brother, it didn't stay. "You will be sorry." His 'serious' face was only slightly broken by the massive grin he could feel spreading. It had been a long time since they had been alone together as brothers, and it definitely helped him feel a lot better. He could feel a cold coming, and he didn't like the way the near future was shaping up, so even a moment's distraction was beautiful.

It wasn't long before the twins were rolling on the floor in a 'fight', laughing and tumbling as if they were kids again.

And then Ageha walked in.

"TWINCESTT!"

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** ARGH! I'M SUCH AN IDIOT! …yup. Happy (extremely belated) birthday Kyofan101 :D Loyal reviewer for 20+ chapters and awesome person all round, I'm glad I've become friends with you :3 *smacks self on head* Yup. I asked you twice and still forgot. But anyway. I hope you had a great day. And now I can say that today is your official 2nd birthday. *shifty eyes*

…I should really write a list of birthdays. I'm hopeless. If you'd like to add to my list, please tell me yours XD

…also… I think I've called Adrian by 2 different surnames -_- Okay, from now on, he's Adrian Green XD I FAIL. A LOT. GET OVER IT.


	34. Twenty five

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ouran high school host club.

**Chapter 34: Twenty five**

**Be warned: There might be some difficult themes to come.**

* * *

><p>"HOW THE FUCK DO YOU LOSE £5 MILLON IN ONE NIGHT?" The silence of the household was shattered by the roars of anger.<p>

"Father-"

"NO! I don't want to her your pathetic excuses! You're meant to be my oldest son, but look at you!"

"Father, you need to rest- it's not good for your heal-"

"Don't you be lecturing ME about MY health you impertinent child!"

Yuuichi sighed, pushing his glasses back to their normal position. "I'm sorry father. I'm just concerned…"

"Don't give me any of that bull." Yoshio glared at him, steepling his fingers in front of his face. Despite being sat behind his desk, he seemed bigger than the son standing before him.

Yuuichi frowned, seeming to consider something before changing his mind. "Excuse me," he said, exiting the room.

"Gladly…" Yoshio's face fell as he sighed, spinning his chair slowly so that he could stare out of the window behind him.

* * *

><p>"I think the old bastard knows. " The voice was low, so muffled that no one but the person on the other side of the phone could hear him. "Well work on it you little shit. I don't pay you for nothing"<p>

* * *

><p>For weeks the headlines of most major newspapers had detailed the stead y decline of the Ootori business. They were so near bankruptcy now that it was impossible, even for them, to pay off reporters or keep outsiders out of the know. Despite the constant help of their allied companies, the Suohs, Hitachiins, Haninozukas and Morinozukas amongst many others weren't able to pull it up to standard.<p>

And despite every effort, no one could work out why the hell it was happening. They investigated every part of the company, but it seemed like nothing they did could raise any hope of success. The standards of their services and products weren't subpar, a rival company hadn't sprung up to steal their business… it was like something was just leeching them of any money… but even that couldn't be traced. People were putting money in, associated companies were getting their money out, but the Ootori company itself didn't… couldn't receive anything transferred digitally, but they couldn't just make every business transaction with cash.

They tried using multiple secret bank accounts, but eventually even that failed. The best technicians were hired to fix bugs in every system, but still…. Still it didn't work. They came to the conclusion that there must be someone close to the top leaking information about their every move. Tension sparked up between everyone- family members hid everything from anyone… secrets were carefully guarded from outside ears. It wasn't rare for the household to go without a word said between two members. Certain areas of the house hadn't been cleaned for a while- the maids had specific orders not to touch anything but furniture- if they found anything even remotely official they had to tell the nearest family member immediately and hope for a lenient punishment.

Kaoru was near to bursting. As the weeks became months, he was almost out of his mind. He barely talked to anyone- and if he did, it was official business. His brother was tied down trying to fix the Hitachiin company (no one had expected that in the 'deal', or marriage between the two families, it would be the Ootoris which would fail and need a helping hand), the Suohs had their own problems to deal with, and even when he did have a chance to talk with Mori or Hunny in between their busy schedules, they'd give him a strained smile, ghosts of a past he used to know. Even Ageha had changed- at some point she had clocked that keeping silent and playing in a corner would prove to be the best solution to ignore all of the shouting and anger and frustration.

And Kyoya... Kyoya's eyes had become almost dead… all light faded from them as if someone had turned them off. When he wasn't in business meetings, he was hunched at his desk, one hand furiously scribbling something down, the other violently tapping at his calculator. To Kaoru's unending regret, his skills lay in spoken persuasion and the arts, definitely not in mathematics or logistics, rendering him almost useless in Kyoya's pursuits. Feeling that he couldn't contribute at all, or, more accurately, couldn't contribute with anything worthwhile, he resigned himself to going around the house, offering drinks, tidying up as he went along.

After about a month of returning from England, most of the family had warmed to him. They all seemed to trust him a lot more now that they knew he wasn't some spy for a foreign company… and the fact that they didn't have to tidy up for themselves helped a lot too. In the house at the moment lived Yoshio and his wife as well as Fuyumi, Yuuichi, Akito and their families, totalling 14 people (without mentioning the hired help). The women and children of the family seemed to like him a lot more, being both the 'helpful inlaw' as well as 'cool older brother' at the same time, playing and looking after the kids whilst keeping up their mother's' spirits. He had yet to feel any such warmth from Yuuichi's side of the family, who all seemed to have a thing about laughter. I.e. not doing it. He felt sorry for their child, about 8, who looked exactly like Kaoru imagined Kyoya had been until he'd met Tamaki. At least the kid, Kenichi, was a male… he dreaded to think what Yuuichi would've done had he not given birth to a strong male first.

The other kids had long since ceased asking whether Kenichi wanted to play with them, deciding that he was an outcast. Kaoru had found that unbearably sad, what with the boy reminding him so much of Kyoya, but he could do little to help- Yuuichi was a strict parent- more so than his father, and any attempt on his part to befriend the child would probably result in strict punishment- not on him but on the boy for 'fraternising with the enemy'.

And so, Kaoru spent months and eventually a whole year wandering about the house, forever in company but desperately lonely. The conversations he did have with the women were unbearably dull- about mundane things he had no interest it, or, if it was about fashion, uninteresting topics within that like the financing of the company or the structure of the industry. And, along with the mundaneness, it was stressful too. He couldn't casually answer- he had to think about how his answers would reflect his whole being. One slip up and even they would abandon him.

Abandon.

Abandoned?

Did he feel abandoned?

Sure, his mother and father were too neck deep in telephone calls and e-mails to talk to him.

Sure, his twin brother hadn't talked to him in what seemed like centuries.

Sure, his husband very rarely even smiled anymore…

But abandoned?

As the thought struck him, he stood up, drawing the curious stares of those around the dinner table. "I uh… I just need to go and get some air." A couple of the women asked if he was feeling ill, but he assured them he wasn't, that he just had some things to think about. As he walked through the door, he heard a couple of mutterings of 'divorce'. Apparently that was another 'thing'.

Everyone thought that he and Kyoya were having relationship issues.

Well.

That wasn't untrue.

But divorce?

…

No.

Why had a pause weaselled its way into that thought?

Kaoru shivered a little, whether from the chill of the night air or the thought itself, he wasn't sure.

Why was life so difficult?

He screwed his eyes shut and punched the garden wall, letting out a small, frustrated grunt. "WHY!"

He knew that, what with the foot he had just stamped and the slight whine in his voice, he looked and sounded like a petulant teen.

And maybe he was. Maybe he hadn't grown up for when he was 16.

Sixteen… that was almost ten years ago. Ten whole years.

Wasted.

Wasted?

…wasted.

Who was to blame? Who was it that had ruined his life?

Was it… was it him? Had he ruined his whole life? But by doing what? Surely this wasn't some sort of karma… did 'god' or whatever ruled over the puny humans truly want to punish him? No. That in itself was selfish and foolish. _Not everything revolves around you. _

Was it Yoshio? It was his fault for pushing his youngest son to the brink of suicidal depression. No. No, it wasn't. How the hell would he know he was going to get cancer? He was a man of tradition and business. One generation's ideals cannot be easily understood by another's.

_Was it Kyoya?_ As soon as he'd thought it, he instantly regretted it. Of course not. Of course not. He loved Kyoya. Loved him from the depths of his heart. Nothing, nothing could change that. In fact, despite the clichéness of the whole phrase, he loved his husband so much that it actually hurt. It hurt to see him depressed… alone… helpless.

Kyoya Ootori; Demon Lord, High Blood Pressure Shadow King.

He can beat everyone, help everyone... but cancer was another matter.

Because it was about the cancer.

Kaoru doubted Kyoya gave a flying shit the finances of the business, and that's what really distinguished him.

His family were running about like headless chickens, the only word in their brain being 'Money'.

Kyoya meanwhile was busy with…

With…

Well he wasn't exactly sure what with.

But it was definitely important.

Definitely.

* * *

><p>Kyoya had developed a permanent crick in his neck from sitting, stopped over his desk almost constantly for twelve months. Sitting up, he rolled his shoulders, wincing at the sharp shoots of pain eradiating from his tired muscles.<p>

He usually chose not to dine when the family did, but decided that he'd had enough work for now and needed the rest. Not that it was exactly 'relaxing' to sit with screaming toddlers, bitchy mums and his brothers.

He came into the dining room almost ten minutes late, frowning when he couldn't spot Kaoru. He was sure he'd heard the redhead (for he'd stopped dying his hair after the black had grown out) say he was going down to eat…

Noticing the look, Fuyumi smiled at him, one of the only people in the family (along with his father) who didn't assume that the two were destined for divorce. "If you're looking for Kaoru-kun, he just went out to get some air… he looked rather pale."

Worry swept across Kyoya's face as his head snapped towards the door leading outside.

"But Kyoya- I'd leave him alone for now. I think he really does need the air, give him time to think without having any added pressure or tensions."

Kyoya nodded slowly, dumbly, resignedly. He sat down, picked up a fork, pushed a few new potatoes around in their sauce. What little appetite he had come downstairs with had disappeared. He sighed, stood again, made his excuses and slipped back up to his room where he fell onto his bed in an exhausted heap.

This couldn't go on for much longer.

He couldn't survive if it did.

* * *

><p>Kaoru yelped as he was suddenly hit on the topside of his head from behind. Not know who or what to expect, he turned around apprehensively, clutching the attacked area, less because of the pain, more for the show of it.<p>

"Kaoru, you're the only sane one I can trust now… I don't want you going about having a breakdown." Yoshio's lip twitched slightly into a smile, flicking his fingers a little to let the cinders of the lit cigarette he was holding fall onto the pavement before having another puff.

Kaoru's eyes went from man to cigarette to man again. "I'm no doctor, but I'm pretty sure that's not going to help you, sir."

Yoshio let out a little chuckle, tilting his head back to let out a trail of smoke. "You're right… but you only live once, right? Best enjoy it while I can."

Kaoru's frown deepend but chose not to say anything, carrying on walking down the path he was on, hearing footsteps behind him.

"Hmm? You used to be more… sprightly. A year ago you would've argued back… I miss that in you."

Kaoru didn't look back, didn't slow down. "So sue me."

"Maybe I should… I need the money." Yoshio laughed again, and the younger man could feel himself being watched. "So… what's up with you and Kyoya then?"

He'd seen the question coming, so he didn't flinch. "Nothing."

"…and that's the problem isn't it."

"Indeed." It wasn't like there was something blocking the way for them. There was nothing wrong. And when there was nothing wrong, there was nothing to be fixed.

"Well… what you probably already know but may not understand is that an Ootori won't say anything unless he'd sure he's right."

Slightly confused, he hung back a second so that he was walking alongside his elder companion.

"What I mean is… you need to TELL him to stop, or he won't. Now don't give me that look. I'd rather die now than see my youngest son and his wonderful husband torn apart because of me."

"Well that's a… sweet sentiment and all, but…" Kaoru sighed resignedly. "I just… don't know anymore. I don't even know what he's doing."

"Then why don't you ask him you fool? He probably thinks you're too busy with your own stuff and doesn't want to bother you."

"But…"

Yoshio gave him a look of 'even you know that that but was you giving in to me' before starting to smile, ruffling the younger man's hair. "C'mon now, you're only a couple of years away from thirty, you need to grow up some time."

"Hey! Twenty five is not 'a couple of years', it's half a decade!" He hated to admit it, but he was feeling slightly better already.

Yoshio chuckled again, this time a bit more throatily. Soon it became apparent that the laugh had triggered something, soon becoming a cough, and a hacking one at that. He brought a handkerchief to his mouth, glancing at it slightly before he hastily stuffed it back in his pocket, giving Kaoru a wary smile.

"How long have you been doing that?"

"…doing what?" Yoshio said, looking away and bringing the cigarette back to his mouth. After a few, long minutes of silently walking along, he relented under the glare he was receiving. "Before you were even born," he said with hopeful tone.

"The blood, father. I saw the blood."

At the use of 'father', Yoshio smiled again. "It's a secret between us, okay?" The smile wasn't a jovial one; the almost completely grey-haired man was being almost completely serious. He tapped his nose conspiratorially.

"I'm not sure I can keep that promise," Kaoru said with worry. This man was the leader of one of (if not THE) biggest health companies in the world… who did his check-ups? Who made sure he was regularly screened? …when was the last time HE'd been to a GP? "When were you even diagnosed? How did you find out?"

"Oh I found out years ago- completely by accident." He laughed softly, as if it were nothing. "I thought I had a cold, or maybe had a throat infection, felt my neck a little, found a lump... and what do you know? Throat cancer- already spread to too many places to operate on." He scratched his neck, almost self-consciously. "I should've been dead a long time ago to be brutally honest."

Kaoru was taken aback. In shock. Scared almost witless. "How… does…. Does anyone else know this?"

"Nope, you're the first person I've told." He let out a long breath. "And I'm glad for it- it feels as if I've gotten rid of a massive weight from my shoulders."

"…I think I know where that weight's gone…" Kaoru rolled his shoulders, now heavy with a sense of dread, pressure… and heartache of too many kinds.

"Sorry… son… but I think I trust you a lot more with it than anyone else in this darned house."

It was the first time Kaoru had heard the man use the term 'son' with quite as much affection and he was shocked yet again. "…but… but…" He'd stopped now, just stood, looking into the older man's eyes. Why were they so decided? So cool and unwavering? He was the one with cancer, yet Kaoru was the one who was a complete wreck.

Yoshio just smiled again which, infuriatingly for Kaoru, rendered the younger unable to argue back. "I expect you two to be glowing again tomorrow morning, sitting around the breakfast table… that is, if you're able to after a long, long night."

Mouth opening a closing soundlessly like a fish, Kaoru blanched before suddenly blushing profusely. Something about in-laws talking about sex lives made everything seem so… wrong. He could only watch as Yoshio chuckled again, thankfully cough free this time, before walking back to wherever he had appeared from, carefully stamping out his cigarette before he came close to the house.

* * *

><p>Kaoru knocked on the door tentatively, despite finding it absurd doing so. He'd never done it before… yet… if he didn't, he'd spend another ten minutes standing outside the door, heart pumping, feeling both awkward and unconfident. Stepping into the room, he saw that Kyoya wasn't at his desk and instantly felt like a complete idiot, equation 'not at desk' with 'not in house'. He was more than a little startled when he saw movement on the bed. Not sure if awake or sleeping, he slowly moved towards the bed, sitting down on the unoccupied side.<p>

"Morning…"

Kaoru smiled slightly. "It's nowhere near morning."

"Oh." Kyoya, still drowsy, rubbed his eyes tiredly. "What time is it?"

"Uhmm…" Finding the nearest clock, which was stupidly hard seeing as this was his bedroom, he checked the time. "Nearly 8 on the dot."

"Huh…"

"Huh?"

"I thought I was asleep for longer…" Kyoya sat up, stretched and yawned.

"You still remind me of a cat y'know."

"Heh?" The sudden emotional turnabout was pretty off-putting.

Kaoru shrugged, settling on the bed slightly more, despite being fully dressed and on top of the covers. "Just… didn't know how to initiate conversation. It was a weird sensation. So I decided to go for a sure-fire route."

It saddened Kyoya to see Kaoru so down, even if he was considerably more cheery today. "Ahh, I see."

Kaoru shifted awkwardly, turning from the black-haired man to the ceiling. "So… Uhmm… what… what have you been up to for the last year?" He laughed at the absurdity of the question. Twelve months and he'd hardly been a hundred meters away from the man, yet he had no idea what was going on in his life. It reminded him of his earlier high school days… when Kyoya's black book had been a source of mystery and intrigue for everyone.

Kyoya rubbed his temples, also starting to smile. "I've been trying to work on a cure for cancer."

Kaoru blinked, gaped, and blinked some more. "What?" This was even less believable that his attempt at world domination. "Seriously?"

"Seriously."

"Seriously?"

"…seriously."

"…but…"

"Yup."

"The frikkin' cure to cancer. And you didn't even tell me?"

"…you've been busy…"

Kaoru could only laugh at how accurate Yoshio's prediction had been. "Warning, incoming cheesy line…"

"I've prepared myself, shoot."

"I'm never too busy for you."

Kyoya recoiled jokily, as if hit. "Oh my, that was indeed cheesy."

"I am terribly sorry. But it is very true."

Kyoya sighed. "Well… I'm giving up. Tell a lie, I gave up about a month ago." He reached out to his bedside table, grabbed the nearest book and offered it to the redhead who took it curiously.

The first pages started with complicated chemical structures, minute workings out… gradually the scribbling became more like that; scribbling. Doodles, random sudokus… he came across one page which rather freaked him out. "You can draw?"

"…well…"

The page was full of small, neat sketches of him. Done in a mix of biro and pencil, Kaoru was detailed perfectly looks wise, as well as emotionally. "'Well'? These are perfect!"

Kyoya's smile blossomed, proud of the drawings he'd frankly forgotten about. "Thanks… though I wouldn't make much of an artist… I can't imagine things, I can only draw what's in front of me, and only if I'm concentrating on it."

…so he'd been watched. This whole time, he'd gone about thinking Kyoya'd been too immersed in his own thoughts to even think about him, but no, he'd been producing beautiful drawings of him. "We're fools, Kyoya. You and I are utter fools."

"It seems so." He laughed, slowly disintegrating into a yawn.

Kaoru grinned, trying to push away any remnants of the feeling of awkwardness that'd implemented itself in the last few months. He bit his bottom lip cheekily. "Kyo-nyaa~" He instantly regretted it. For once in his life, he regretted the comment. It was inappropriate and killed the mood and… and… and...

Kyoya raised an eyebrow.

His lip twitched.

"Nyaa~"

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** To paraphrase the great GLaDOS: "Believe me I'm still alive!"

Yoshio: "YOLO :D"

See you in another month or something -_-"

/shot

(Oh. And no medical knowledge in this story is legit or anything… please don't use it as a foolproof guide to decide whether or not you have cancer or something… -_-" But if you do start coughing up blood, that's a definite sign that you should go and see a doctor.)


	35. Coffee

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ouran high school host club.

**Chapter 35: Coffee**

In the excitement of a rather… _'busy'_ night, Kaoru's mind had completely put aside his earlier conversation with his father in law. But in the early hours of the morning, the memory was happy enough to pop up, causing Kaoru much shifting and turning in the bed. Eventually he decided that he was very much awake and on discovery that it was 4 am, decided that that was a good a time as any to have some coffee.

On discovering that he was in fact naked, he hastily pulled on some pyjamas before making his way downstairs, turning on the fancy expensive coffee maker that had replaced a member of staff, (another reminder that the war between man and machine was one not worth fighting.) Pouring in enough sugar and cream to cause Hunny to get cavities just by looking at it, he then went on a search for some confectionary goods. Because, let's face it, who doesn't want to eat donuts for an early morning snack?

As he made his way through his third jam-filled calorie-fest, he remembered the words of Ernestine Ulmer, an American author; "_Life is uncertain. Eat dessert first."_ And how accurate that was. He licked the sugar off of his fingers somewhat guiltily, remembering the reason he was downstairs in the first place. Yoshio had been coughing up blood. He had said the Grim Reaper should've been knocking on his door months, perhaps even years ago. What could he say? Should he tell Kyoya? But the man had only just perked up, even if only slightly…

Shivering slightly at the chill of the kitchen at this early hour, he huddled around his steaming coffee and went into the living room. Or at least he made to do so; sitting (or more slouching,) in one of the large, minimalistic style sofas was a form that looked incredibly similar to the one he'd left in bed only half an hour before, except ever so slightly larger and more… prickly looking. If humans could look prickly.

The prickly creature did seem to be breathing regularly, which was some sort of consolation to Kaoru (nothing would beat coming downstairs to find a corpse casually sprawled on the sofa,) however it did seem to be shivering slightly. Kaoru sighed slightly before carefully placing his coffee mug back in the kitchen and heading for the airing cupboard where he hoped the boiler would be keeping a closet full of blankets warm. Finding one such entity, he quietly made his way over to the sofa and draped it over the sleeping body as softly as he could in order to not wake the man up.

Once his mug was returned to his hands and he had retreated to a safe distance across the room, Kaoru found himself staring at Yuuichi, something he never thought he'd ever do. He found himself intrigued by the secretive and frankly terrifying man; who, until now, he hadn't actually seen in such detail. He'd snuck glances at the man, enough to know that he was basically Yoshio but infinitely scarier and quite a bit taller, but that was it. Like all of the Ootoris, Yoshio was definitely not unattractive looks-wise; Kaoru suspected that he would've been quite popular amongst the ladies, and probably still was, even now. But before one could even fawn over his looks, one had to get over something which must be startlingly obvious to even strangers- Yoshio exuded the 'Don't fuck with me' vibe to such a degree that Kyoya's seemed but a star's twinkle compared to the sun's blaze.

This was probably the prickly sensation Kaoru had sensed earlier- a lot more discreet but also a lot more uncomfortable than Kyoya's purple tendrils of evil. And this was when he was in the semi-unconcious state of sleep; what would it be like if the man's senses were trained on you? Supressing a small shudder, he could only imagine a lion against a mouse- or maybe even something worse, something not quite so fair. A god (or devil, however you wanted to look at it,) against a human. A snail. A dead leaf. This time he really did shudder, imagining himself powerless against the imposing man.

Lost in his thoughts, Kaoru almost had a heart attack when there was suddenly a large crashing sound, reverberating around the room. He jumped, spilling not-exactly-boiling-but-still-damned-hot-coffee on himself, too shocked for his vocal chords to release a yelp or shout. It took him a long moment to realise that Yuuichi had simply sneezed. It didn't seem physically possible that the man _could _sneeze- it was such a human feature, and one that basically summed up a whole species' vulnerabilities. Suddenly wide awake, Kaoru could now see one of the most hilarious sights he had ever seen. Dripping from THE Yuuichi Ootori's nose was a small, glistening trail of snot.

Kaoru immediately clamped both hands over his mouth and nose, wishing with all of his heart that his body wouldn't betray him and release the shaky breathing he was now trying to hold back as a monumentally loud chuckling fit. No, it wouldn't even be something even as slightly masculine as chucking- it would probably be a giggling fit. It was too much. Not trusting himself able to hold the mug steady, he placed it on the table as quietly as he could before making a mad dash upstairs, his feet immediately taking him to his bedroom where he promptly collapsed into a shaking, hiccupping mass of a man. He wiped away his tears, biting his lip to try and stop the laughs from waking the whole neighbourhood. "That did not just happen," he muttered to himself repeatedly. "No way did I just see that. No. Fucking. Way."

After he spent about 10 minutes calming himself down, he looked at the clock to find that it was the more acceptable time of 5 am. Composing his features into something that looked like he'd just woken up, he made his way downstairs in the hopes of recovering the incriminating evidence (coffee in this household was taken as black as ink and without even a grain of sugar, thus the creamy, syrupy cup'o'goodness would most certainly point to him,) before sleeping beauty woke up.

Kaoru was glad to see that Yuuichi was indeed still in his sleeping state, the mug exactly where he had left it. Picking it up, he took a couple of sips, wrinkling his nose at the lukewarm temperature of the liquid. But then the thought of noses brought back the thought of the booger and… before he could stop it; Kaoru had choked out the coffee he had just drunk, spraying it across the table. All humour instantly drained from him as, although he hadn't actually hit the sleeping man himself, he had managed to catch the end of the important-looking file lying in a semi-neat pile on the coffee table.

Before his brain had time to think, he felt his body rush to the kitchen in search of a dishcloth or paper towel- anything that would clean up the mess (and hopefully fill the pit he'd just felt himself dig.) Luckily, he was pleased to discover that it was only the one page that he'd ruined… and there were hundreds of pages… surely Yuuichi wouldn't notice if one measly piece of paper were to go missing… Annoyed at himself for wearing pocket-less pyjamas, he stuffed the paper down his PJ bottoms, in case Yuuichi awoke to find Kaoru sneaking off with some of his property. Then he cleaned up what little mess remained before sneaking back up to his room, all the while regretting the slightly soggy paper's location.

Heart pounding with adrenaline, (and probably the sugar intake of the past hour,) Kaoru grinned, pulling out the paper. This was kind of like industrial espionage! He had taken a secret document from an Ootori without being caught! Smoothing out the wrinkles as he read, his smile once again faded as he tilted his head to one side in confusion. The document didn't make a lot of sense out of context, but he could tell it was a letter of some sort. The grovelling tone indicated that this was definitely sent TO Yuuichi not from him, but other than that…

Amongst the boring statistic reports, (where the writer of the letter seemed to find some sort of calm, evident in the almost soothingly detailed numbers,) was a single line that stood out for Kaoru.

"…_and of course, as per your wishes, the Omega system virus was released and is still being maintained as planned; whether your 'dearest' father dies now or in ten years, there won't be any money left to his name before the end of the month." _

Kaoru's confused expression slowly metamorphed into one of pure, unadulterated horror. The paper felt like it was burning through his hands- he dropped it immediately and stared at it as if it were writhing on the floor, gushing fountains of blood. With a shaking hand, he went to pick it up again, to read on, to find out more. Surely this was just out of context; a bad joke at most… everyone had tried gallows' humour at least once right?

He slowly read through it again, making sure to read every single sentence, word, syllable right to prove to himself that what he was reading was not in fact almost solid evidence that proved that, for whatever reason, Yuuichi was involved in the bankruptcy of the company.

He wasn't wrong.

But…

His eyes never leaving the paper, Kaoru made his way down the stairs for the third (and most possibly final) time that morning (or ever.) He reached the bottom, forming a sort-of plan in his mind. Slowly, almost casually, he went and sat on the sofa opposite the sleeping man and waited.

It wasn't long, not more than ten minutes later, that Yuuichi awoke with a start. He obviously hadn't expected to have fallen asleep over his work, but the added mystery of the warm blanket confused him even more. Finding his glasses fallen on the floor beside him, he put them on whilst he sniffed slightly, his face showing mortification at the discovery of the snottyness. He brought a handkerchief up to his nose and cleaned himself up in the most strategic and almost majestic way imaginable before he finally looked up and did a double take.

The air in the room immediately felt as if it were crackling- it was an overbearing, relentless and painful sensation, as if the world was crashing down around Kaoru to reveal the fiery pits of hell. But he wouldn't let himself be intimidated. Not this time. He set his jaw as a bead of sweat rolled down the side of his face. "Good morning Yuuichi."

The older man's eye twitched ever so slightly, and Kaoru could only imagine that it was because his reaction showed much less fear than he was used to inspiring. "What are _you_ doing here." His tone could never be said to be particularly impolite, but it certainly wasn't the warmest greeting in the world by any stretch of the imagination.

"Did you have a nice sleep? You must be tired. Your mind must be filled with worry for your father." Kaoru sat back, watching Yuuichi think about the words, think about why he was saying this. His brow deepened considerably whilst he thought, but he obviously couldn't think of anything as he started to tidy his things into one pile he could carry back to his office.

The boy was definitely an anomaly in his plans. What was he planning, the scheming fag. It was atrocious. His brother was despicable enough; thinking that he could get away with acting like he ran the goddamn place, but then to marry in some half-bit family? The Hitachiins were hardly an Ootori level family. Perhaps, _perhaps, _it would've been slightly more… _tasteful_… had the Hitachiin been female, but a gay marriage? Unacceptable. And this was why the Ootori family was being dragged down. Its standards were sub-par because it allowed such scum to enter into it. To defile it.

The announcement that his father had cancer had been a delightful addition to his plans. It served the old bastard right, really. It was karma. He was obviously not fit for the job anymore. But why let his unacceptable ways be left unpunished? No, Yoshio Ootori would have to die without a penny to his name, be disgraced and shamed beyond the grave before his thoughts of justice would be sated.

And now what did to fucking faggot want? What the hell was he staring at? He was acting like the sun shone out of his bloody backside, brownnosing the rest of the Ootoris (if they could still be called that, the way they were acting,) at his 'tea parties'- and now he had the bleeding gall to sit there accusingly, even patronisingly, trying to gain some moral high ground or something to compensate for his blatant lack of intelligence.

_I'm not having this_, Yuuichi thought, starting to pack away his things. "If you'll excuse me." It was less a request, more a statement. He stood up, feeling the blanket fall from his shoulders.

"Sit down, Yuuichi." The words seem to surprise both men in the room.

"Pardon?" He tried not to show the sheer amount of anger and disbelief he felt at the moment.

"Sit down," Kaoru unfolded the piece of paper he had crumpled in one hand. He placed it on the table and smoothed it out slowly. "And explain this."

**A/N:** *cough* I'm sorry D': I'm a lazy procrastinator... FEEL FREE TO SEND ME ANGRY PMs. Maybe that'll make me work faster XD But seriously, I will definitely be updating faster now.


	36. In all seriousness

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ouran high school host club.

**Chapter 36: In all seriousness**

* * *

><p>"Sit down," Kaoru unfolded the piece of paper he had crumpled in one hand. He placed it on the table and smoothed it out slowly. "And explain this."<p>

Yuuichi eyed it cautiously from across the room, only able to see a slightly stained page of writing from where he stood. Some sort of curiosity kicked in then as he sighed and almost rolled his eyes sardonically. He slowly made his way over, as if to amplify the fact that he was 'kindly' wasting his precious time on this little venture.

The way he sat on the sofa was almost regal; his back straight as a rod, you could almost see the crown resting on his amazingly pristine (what with the abrupt sleepover on the couch,) black hair. But, if possible, his back became even straighter. "What is this?" he asked, his face a mix of confusion and irritation. No, irritation wasn't the right word. Rage. Pure, bubbling rage. The bubbling was being kept under a lid for now, but the pot was slowly, surely starting to shake, break apart.

"I…" Kaoru felt his voice waver a little. "I… found it. On the table. In front of you."

Without even batting an eyelid, Yuuichi stood and made no effort to retrieve the paper. "I don't know what you're trying to pull here, but whatever _that _is, it certainly isn't mine."

Suddenly, Kaoru felt like a small child being humiliated by an all-powerful adult. Was he just dreaming the words on the page? Wide eyed, he had to look down at the page in front of him. No… no, it was still the same as before. So then, was it just his sugar-fuelled sleep deprived brain making links that weren't there? But… but… "But…"

"It's not good for your skin if you wake up too early." Yuuichi flicked him a quick self-satisfied smirk before making his way to and up the stairs. "Good morning_, brother dearest_."

By this time, Kaoru's breaths were coming in short, panicked pants. He was usually abnormally good at standing up to pressure, but this… He slowly counted to ten, not wanting to start hyperventilating or having an otherwise unattractive panic attack. With his teeth chattering, his breath still shaking slightly and a sheen of sweat covering his forehead, he admittedly didn't look too great to begin with, but he put that out of mind as he picked up the paper. "Wait… wait." His voice was feeble with a sense of realisation. The paper he was holding probably didn't have anyone's fingerprints but his own and Yuuichi's. If worst came to worst, Yuuichi could say that he was forced into holding the paper.

The complexity of the thought sent Kaoru's mind spinning into madness. No matter what situation he imagined, it always turned out for the worst for him. There was always something in his way, no matter what the option, and, and, and… lasduglgfe.

For some reason, he imagined himself banging his head against a laptop keyboard like a frustrated squid of anger. Why his laptop keyboard specifically, he couldn't quite say. Maybe it was the sleep. Or lack of it. And… stuff. He could feel the fine line between genius and madness smudging. If there ever was such a line. Maybe he had just gone mad. It would be nice not to have to worry about anything. Maybe spend some time wrapped up in a protective suit, throwing himself at a padded wall… He knew it was stupid- he wasn't going mad- but it beat having to face Yuuichi. Because he'd have to now. He'd started digging directly down without packing a ladder.

* * *

><p>It wasn't that they were purposefully avoiding the Ootoris.<p>

It was just…

Haruhi sighed, decided there wasn't enough time for her to be sighing, picked up her pen and started scribbling again.

Her notes were scrawled over, besides and between every line of a printed document she had been given, telling the owner of said document what needed to be changed. She had a feeling that said recipient wouldn't want her to be adding this job to her workload but…

There was a knock on her office door. "Come in," knowing who it was, she didn't raise her head. "Speak of the devil…"

Tamaki barely looked up from his pages either, giving her a quick smile before reverting back into business mode. "Mr. Bushi wants to talk with you at a meeting tomorrow at three regarding the PITMAS case. I'm going to be in France from the 17th to the 23rd, Natsume's nanny is going on a day's holiday on the 25th- did you say you were going to be free then?"

During his speech, Haruhi had switched from scribbling on the papers to into her diary, making a couple of quick notes to herself. "Yep, should be free then. If not, I'll call one of the others." She looked up then, meeting Tamaki's eye. "…I didn't think it would be so much of a reflex to depend on them so much, even now…"

He let out a small, tired laugh as he looked up; a ghost of the ruckus he used to be capable of. "It's almost been 13 years since we met, I'm pretty sure we're allowed to depend on them, no matter what's happened. Maybe it'll be good, having a chat with them again."

"What, and just expect them to drop all of their work to come and have some tea?" Her smile grew as she tried to deepen her voice. "'Oh hey, I know you're busy but how's about dressing up like pompous bishies and serving expensive cakes to rich girls like the good ol' days?'"

Tamaki bowed slightly, and when he came up he had a cheeky smile plastered over his face- the one that made girls faint and sparkles and roses appear from nowhere. "It would be pleasure to serve you, my princess."

She batted her eyelids playfully, adopting the stereotypical female persona. "Oh my~" She giggled (a sound that she didn't even think she could produce ten odd years ago,) before suddenly switching persona again. "Or maybe my lady would prefer the natural type? I'm not much, but I hope I could be of some service to you…" her voice had become… not timid, but thoughtful; the kind of voice you would expect of some soft-spoken intellect.

This time it was Tamaki's turn to be the maiden, and, as Haruhi had had to admit on several occasions, without the overdone make-up and regency dress, he was pretty darn convincing. Every so often Tamaki would grow his hair out so that it was just long enough to tie up into a silky ponytail, which he did with any of the accessories he found in his wife's room, or occasionally even with a rubber band to get the full commoner feel (though that usually ended in tears.) This was one such month and, removing the more professional-looking black hairband, he swished his hair Hollywood/ Shampoo commercial style. "Because I'm worth it." He held the dramatic pose (including the mouth agape, misty eyes and middle-distance stare) for a little under two seconds before his face was split into two by a grin.

"I hate to be the one to break it to you but I think the mass media is having a serious effect on you."

"Nonsense!" Tamaki half-laughed, half-exclaimed, retying his sun-coloured hair in a casually coiffed manner. His fingers worked quickly and expertly, not missing a single strand in order to make the perfect ponytail; dead centre of his head and supremely smooth. "I just have luscious colour AND volume of my own accord!"

"Damned rich bastards…" Haruhi had never completely shaken off the expression, and, although she wasn't exactly poor now, her hand unconsciously moved to her own hair, which she expected was definitely ruffled up from her busy day. Never even missing a beat, Tamaki held out a hairbrush, making it appear as if by magic. She glared at him silently before sighing and taking it. Apparently, it didn't matter how much of a tomboy she had been, or even how much she talked about her opinions on gender and outwards appearance- in this world she'd entered, she would have to wear a skirt suit, high heels and have the best damned hair you'd ever seen.

As she brushed through her hair for what felt like a lifetime, she looked up at the man who'd now perched himself on the end of her desk. "Are _you_ free on the 25th?"

Tamaki pulled a pained face, but quickly wiped it off. "I am now. I think my father wouldn't mind me just taking a single day off…"

"If it's going to cause you trouble, you don't have to do it, Tamaki. I can call another nanny by then."

"No. No, I want us to be happy again. All of us, Ouran's Host Club."

"You forgot the 'High School' part," she said jokingly. "I don't think we're still them."

"We'll always be them, no matter what." To her great chagrin, Tamaki reached out and ruffled her now almost completely straight hair. "See? As childish as always, you have nothing to worry about."

Haruhi huffed, swatting away his hand. "Fine. 25th. Now we just need the others to be as childish as you."

"Qu'ils mangent de la brioche!"

"Let them eat cake indeed…"

"There's going to be cake!?"

"Of course, what tea party would be a tea party without cake?"

There was a strangely masculine giggle on the other side of the line. It wasn't the childish, almost girlish one he had possessed in his pre-pubescent years, but Hunny was still Hunny, and no deep voice or monumentally rapid growth spurt could change that. It was unmistakably the voice of an almost thirty year old man who could seem like he would kill you one second, then play with bunnies the next. Some would say that this was basically describing a psychopath. And they'd probably be right if they met him on the wrong side of noon.

"Haru-chan," he asked, somehow managing to sound like a curious five year old, "can Ume-chan come too?"

Haruhi almost spluttered down the phone, having taken a sip of water at just the wrong time. "'Ume-chan'? You still call… him that?" The name, which would've been an adorable one for a kitten, just sounded plain strange to describe… "Sure, Nekozawa-san can come too… as long as we don't have to black out the whole house…"

"No problem! I told Ume-chan that if he was going to live with me, then no curtains would be closed until the sun set and then I slowly started to take away his cloaks from his wardrobe and threatened to throw out Beelzenef if he went to get more, and… and… and…"

His tone sounded like a child boasting about his day to his mum, but Haruhi could only imagine the pure fear of living with the man (for calling him a boy would seem amazingly absurd). Nekozawa certainly had guts; she had to give him that. It had been a while since she'd heard about their… relationship… but up 'til this point, she could only imagine a small, European looking boy trailing alongside what looked to all the world like Death incarnate. Now she imagined the two blonde bombshells (if that was even the right terminology to describe men,) striding down a street like they owned the damn place, which, to be brutally honest, they probably did. Hunny wasn't tall, but he wasn't short either and now he sported the same kind of hairstyle as Mori, though with a longer fringe. In his 'adult form' he certainly seemed a lot more scary a lot more of the time, though his heart was still almost identical to how it had been before.

"That sounds… uhm…" she couldn't think of the right word to mask her raw fear so she let the sentence trail off. "So then, the 25th- and let Kirimi-chan know too."

"The 25th?" Hikaru leant back in his chair, phone held handless between his shoulder and ear. "Uh… What day is it today? The… uhm…" He flicked through his diary, purely for the show of it. He never wrote anything down in it; it just made him look very impressive with all of its black leather goodness. "Uhh…" He leant back even further so that now he was sitting balanced on the chair's two back legs, abandoning the book on the floor and getting back to the coding he needed to have done a couple of hours ago. "Well… uh, let's be honest now, I have no idea what I'm doing on that day. I'm probably free though, so we'll definitely be th-"

Haruhi, shaking her head with a small smile, interrupted him. "Mori left about 20 minutes ago; he should be coming home about now. Just ask him, please? Tell him that Tamaki's thinking about making it a no-work day for all of our associates, god knows how much trouble that's going to cause."

"Oooookayyyy~" The sounds of him speedily touch typing suddenly ceased. "Ooh, oh, just hang on a sec, I think I heard the door." He took the phone from his mouth so that he could hear better. "MOOOooooooooooooooooori? Phoooooooone!"

The sound of a door closing, heavy but fast footsteps on stairs, another door opening. Haruhi couldn't help but smile when she heard a kiss on the cheek. Then a small, muffled conversation.

"Who?"

"Haruhi."

"Something wrong?" She could almost see the concerned expression he would be wearing right now.

"No, no, well… I don't think so… it sounded like pleasure not business." The phone was passed between them.

"Hey." The man had some magical power of making you feel special, even why only one word had been said.

"Hey, Mori, sorry to call you when you're at home…"

"Not at all, always a pleasure to speak with you. Something the matter?"

"Tamaki's had another 'genius' plan, as ever." She let out a small laugh/sigh hybrid. "He wants us to have a tea party… all of us, the host club."

"Whenever it is, we'll be free. Hmm?" His voice became slightly quieter as Hikaru asked him a question. "She said we're going to have a Host club event." His voice got louder again. "Hikaru would like to know why."

"I'm pretty certain you know exactly why," she said. "For them. Well, tell a lie, it started because we needed a babysitter for Natsume, but I can't fault Tamaki's idea."

"For Kyoya and Kaoru," Mori said, once again in the quiet voice. "I don't know."

There was a small silence then, until the phone switched holders again. "Will he come?" He seemed to think about it for a second. "Will Kao come?"

"I don't know, Hikaru. I really don't. The last time I spoke to them, well the last time I spoke to either of them was months ago, and even then they weren't… they weren't the same as before. Maybe something's changed since then, though," she said consolingly. "And even if it hasn't, this could be what does it. A tea party, like before."

Hikaru sighed acceptingly. The thought of not having talked to his brother for over two… maybe three months depressed him beyond belief. "Okay, well… let me know either way."


	37. LMFAO

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ouran high school host club.

**Chapter 37: LMFAO**

* * *

><p>Kaoru basically had a heart attack as his phone started vibrating on the bedside table. He'd just managed to slip into bed without waking Kyoya up when the sound of the plastic hitting wood sounded, loud due to the silence of the sleeping household. He stared at it like it was a dangerous animal before he remembered that he should probably hang up. A quick glance at the caller ID though, and he changed his mind. "Haruhi?" he whispered as quietly as he could. "Just give me a second, okay? I don't want to wake Kyoya. Call you back in a bit."<p>

He pulled a jumper over his clothes and managed to slip out of the house. Deciding that he'd done enough treks up the stairs to last a lifetime, he vowed to not go back up to his room until strictly necessary. Plonking himself on a garden bench, he dialled her number. "I'm sorry," he said, just as she did.

"Is this a bad time? I can call back later if you want?"

"No! No… you've actually called at a brilliant time. This is brilliant." Kaoru nodded to himself, rubbing the faint scar on the back of his head. "You wouldn't happen to be in contact with the others would you?"

Haruhi paused, cautious. "If I said yes, why would you want to know?"

Kaoru frowned. He had expected more rejoicing at his eagerness, not wariness. "Uhm… I can't… really… tell you on the phone." He hadn't thought of it 'til then, but phone hacking did happen quite a lot. He was lucky to have remembered, and he could hear Haruhi clocking at the same time he had.

She sighed, but not the tired one she had grown accustomed to throughout her life; it was an almost happy one. "Well, I was actually just about to invite you and your husband to a party. Would that be convenient?"

"It… uhm… depends on what kind of party." If it were some large social gathering, there would be no chance to talk to his friends in private.

"It'll just be us. Our host club… or, I guess, more accurately, it'll be…" she paused as she thought about it. "I don't even know what to call us anymore… the Host Club with a bit on the side? The gang? Sometimes, and this is very, very occasionally, I hate not having the creative flare that you lot have."

"Hey, I'm the one with the most arty degree out of all of us; I take that as a personal attack."

"Attack?" Haruhi laughed a sort of 'you'd think I would even *try* to bother to attack you?' sort of laugh, the barriers in her voice breaking down a little.

"So… who's coming?"

"Your brother, Mori, Hunny, Nekoza… ah… uh… Umehito-san, Tamaki of course and-" She was cut off as her other mobile (her work one,) started to buzz. "Sorry, I have to get… oh, it's a text… from your damned brother. I knew I shouldn't have given him my work numbeuhh… okay, he seems to be illiterate now. Do you have any idea what 'ADGJ JMPTW MPA DTTT' means?"

"Uh…" Kaoru closed his eyes, trying to think what the combination could possibly mean. Wincing, he found he was disappointed and more than slightly saddened by the possibility that for one of the first times in his life, he couldn't understand what his brother was trying to say… "No idea, sorr-"

"Oh, no, hold that thought, appears like that was Ageha, stole Hikaru's phone. Again."

Relieved, Kaoru let out a laugh. "Oh aye, and what did Age-chan want to say to you?"

"I have no clue. Your brother texts just as well as she does; I mean, what the heck does 'Sry, Age stole phone, lol. Brb, ttyl' mean?"

"Ahh, I think you have discovered the monster that is text speak. He says he's sorry, Ageha stole his phone, he 'laughed out loud' and says he'll be right back, talk to you later."

"…I feel as if you're mocking me right now, Mister Hitachiin."

"Hey. If you can't keep up with technological advances from the 90's, then I have free right to mock you."

"The 90's? Surely not that long ag-"

"Nope, even longer. Did you know that it was in a letter addressed to the much loved British Prime Minister, Winston Churchill that the phrase 'OMG' was first used? And that in return, he replied that he was 'laughing heartily out loud!'? Makes you think, dunnit."

"Uh… and this has to do with…"

"Nothing really, just thought you might want to know. Pass's the time, doesn't it."

"Uh…Kaoru? Are you… okay?"

"…I'm… perfectly…" He stopped. Held back a choke. Breathed in. Out. "…fine."

"Oh Kaoru… that didn't sound like you were okay to me."

"Haruhi, I'm fine. What day did you say the party was on? What time?"

"The 25th… hey, stop trying to change the topic. Kaoru, is something wrong?" There was a linger in her voice which asked more questions than her simple on had done. _'Is he dead?' 'Is he close to dying?' 'Is there something wrong with Kyoya?' 'Have you found out what's wrong with the company?'_

"What time?"

"Huh?" Remembering her manner lessons, she rephrased. "Pardon?"

"What time is the party, Haruhi?"

"Oh. Uhm… arrive for 3pm."

"Okay, then I'll see you then."

"Kaor-"

* * *

><p>They walked in to see Mori dancing to 'Sexy and I know it'.<p>

If there was one thing that nobody expected in their lives, this was it.

Porcelain lay smashed on the ground where Hikaru had obviously been sitting moments before.

Antique probably.

Really, really expensive china.

Though who could blame him. It was Mori. Who also happened to be his boyfriend. Anyone in that situation who's able to hold onto their teacup deserves a medal. A shiny, gold one. The size of a planet.

"You're kidding me." Kaoru couldn't help but explode with laughter. It seemed he wasn't the only one. The only person with a straight face in the room was Mori himself, the rest of them either clapping along or trying desperately to wipe the tears of laughter from their eyes. "I don't even think I want to know what's happening right now," he managed to say through bursts of laughter.

Even Haruhi, slowly rocking back and forth with laughter in the corner of a sofa, could only give him nonsensical replies until after the music died down. "Tamaki asked what we thought the theme tunes to our life would be… H.. Hikaru suggested LMFAO for Mori…"

"Hey! It was a joke! I wasn't being serious-" He caught Mori's eye and looked down at the floor. "…truthful as it is…" Instantly, he was surrounded by various wolf whistles and someone singing a rather strange rendition of 'MORI AND HIKARU SITTING IN A TREE-'.

"Oioi, what's with you being all adorable now? Did weeks without my presence soften you brother?" Kaoru punched him (not so lightly) on the shoulder, summoning the cheekiest smile he could muster. All too quickly, he felt the air in the room die, as a collective breath was held. "Okay, c'mon now, we're not that fragile." He rolled his eyes, hooking his arm through Kyoya's unsuspecting one and yanking him close. "Hey guys, we're back from the dead. You can stop whispering around us now."

Kyoya's frown grew and melted in the same second, becoming his usual cocky smile. "I hear you've all been pitying me…" he cracked his knuckles playfully, pulling himself up so that he seemed like he was the tallest in the room. "I'll soon change that." The gaze that used to freeze anyone who came under it seemed to have the opposite effect now; the room thawing into relaxed laughter.

"It's good to have you back, Kao-chan, Kyo-chan." The man's voice still sounded strange coming from Hunny, but it wasn't as terrifying now as when he'd first had his growth spurt.

"It's nice to see you, too, Hunny-semp… Hunny." Kaoru grinned, remembering how Hunny had told them to drop all of the formalities once they were out of uni, though it was still hard as nails about half a decade later. "It's nice to see all of you again. It's been a while…"

"Oh stop it, you'll make me go all teary-eyed," Hikaru said teasingly before being punched again by his brother.

"I wasn't finished dearest brother. Ahem." He pretended to collect himself, as if in front of a massive crowd awaiting a speech. He looked around the room like a King before his minions. "Hey, where's Ageha? She's the only reason I came." Grinning as the room scowled at him, he stuck his tongue out.

"She and Natsume-kun are being looked after by Kirimi-chan today…" She sounded a bit apprehensive before shrugging at the other Nekozawa.

Kaoru did a double take as he noticed the man for the first time after coming into the room. "Wha- uh… hi there… I see you still have your way with... entrances…"

Umehito raised a curious eyebrow. "I've been standing here the whole time… even before you two came in…" then he cocked his head slightly. "And this is my…" he looked at Hunny- "our house… how could you not know I was here?"

"This is your house?!" Kaoru gaped at them, openly surprised. "But I thought… I just thought that Tamaki and Haruhi had moved here, that's why their address was different…" Out of the corner of his eye, he saw multiple face-palms occur. "Look, I'm sorry, okay? I haven't exactly been up to date on the whole 'social' thing recently. Did you know, Kyoya?"

"Uhh…" The man in question turned to stare at a really interesting spot on the wall.

"You're kidding! You mean I'm the only one who didn't know?"

"Uhh…" A few sheepish grins were flashed at him, along with a collection of apologies.

Kaoru pouted, squeezing onto a sofa between Hikaru and Mori, (as any good brother would do to protect his brother's innocence…) "Fine, fine, I get the idea, I'm still the young, stu-" He paused, counted some numbers off on his hands. "…am I the youngest one here?" The group looked between themselves. Mori, Hunny and Umehito were all in the same year. Kyoya and Tamaki were the same. That left Hikaru, Haruhi and himself… "Oh shit, I am. How have I never realised this before? Is this another thing you all knew that I didn't?"

"Uhh…." The third 'uhh' in under three minutes told Kaoru that he was once again, the only clueless one in the room.

"Oh wow. Wow. Not that it's important or anything…" He'd been drinking since he was old enough to be seen at formal junctions, so he'd never worried about having to need fake licenses or whatever to go out clubbing…

"Yeah… it's kind of hard to notice that you're the youngest when you're surrounded by those two…" Haruhi was pointing at two blondes who, at some point during Kaoru's dilemma, had lost interest and were playing some sort of game like IT. "For goodness sake, they're in their late twenties and they're still playing games for four year olds…"

Tamaki and Hunny giggled as they ran about each other, dodging in probably the most dangerous game played in the history of IT. All eyes stared, horrified, as they danced about each other, barely missing hitting priceless vases, cabinets full of one-of-a-kind china and a mounted Russian-looking gun (which, given the Nekozawa family tree, was probably loaded.) Haruhi paled considerably whenever either of them came near a particularly large vase, no doubt causing her some seriously stressful déjà vu, whereas Umehito himself seemed more concerned about the safety of one particular player.

"Okay stop, before one of you gets killed." Neither seemed to hear her over their own laughter, much to the annoyance of Haruhi, who seemed ready to kill someone herself. Her hackles raised, she was about to go and beat some sense into them, but Mori stood, placed a consoling hand on her shoulder, then walked over to them, easily separating them from the tangle they had somehow gotten into and sitting them down in panting heaps on the nearest chairs.

"So let me get this straight. Together, they probably own a fifteenth of the world's money, one is part of an almost Royal-line whilst the other is known for causing destruction comparable with nuclear bombs. They probably own about 5 brain cells between them. They're playing a playground game. And I'm younger than them. Oh lord, I can feel the grey hairs coming already…" Kaoru sighed, sinking into the sofa some more as Hunny grinned at him.

"Kao-chan, you forgot something that Tama-chan and I share!"

"Oh? I did? Do I really want to know?"

"We both still have Usa-chan and Kuma-chan!"

"Of course. You both still play with stuffed animals."

"And, and and!" Tamaki raised his hand, grinning like a 5 year-old with an answer.

"Yes, Suoh-kun?"

"We're both blonde!"

Would anyone like some facepalm with their tea?

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** I don't think I'm very good at writing drama xD I keep reverting back to stupidity :D

HAPPY BIRTHDAY KUROHIIRAGI-CHAN, MY WONDERFULLY INSANE DAUGHTER XD


	38. Forming

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ouran high school host club.

**Chapter 38: Forming**

* * *

><p>"So… let me get this straight." Huddled around a small oak coffee table, the members of the Host-club+1 stared at a sheet of A4 paper. "Did you, or did you not spit coffee over the really really angry evil-looking Ootori."

"For fuck's sake, Hikaru, shut up."

The tension in the room was thick. Each were keeping their minds to their contemplative selves, other than the noisy ginger who was either in heavy denial or just stupid. The general consensus was the latter.

Kyoya picked up the letter, as if to get a better view.

"So… am I right? Please tell me that I'm not… I'm perfectly happy with being wrong on this occasion. Perfectly happy."

"No, Kaoru… I think… I think you were right." Haruhi rubbed her eyes with the thumb and first finger of her left hand, slouching slightly. "So. Your brother has been using an outside agent to… embezzle the Ootori funds."

Re-placing the paper with careful consideration, (and a look that could also be used in the context of, say, having a deadly venomous scorpion ready to piece through the skin of his finger,) Kyoya echoed the eye-rubbing frustration and slouch. "If his denials were lies, then that is what the evidence would point to, yes."

"Okay, I'm just going to put this out there, apparently being the only one bad with maths: What do all of the numbers mean?" Kaoru leaned in closer to Kyoya, pointing out the columns of digits, splattered with the occasional line of readable/ comprehensible text.

"Nothing amazingly helpful, I'm afraid. Obviously, it would be amazingly unintelligent for those involved to have kept physical copies of bank statements, stating exact methods and amounts stolen… not even a cocky… person like my brother would risk it."

"Right… so any other ideas?"

"They're most likely something to do with whatever engine the 'criminals' are running."

Kaoru turned to Hikaru as if he were speaking a long-dead language. "Uh… 'engine'? Like the ones in cars?"

"No. Just... no. Well… similar but… okay, in general terms, it's like the core of a program, I guess…" He sighed, obviously struggling to give in. "Okay, just think of it like… a… car engine… sort of… not really…"

"Right… I have faith in you, my technologically advanced sibling."

"Fine, forget I even mentioned engines. The numbers are probably part of what form the 'Omega'… whatever that is…"

"Okay… and what's the Omega virus?"

"Can you not hear? I have no freaking idea."

"All right, all right, no need to bite my head off… would you be able to find out what the thingy is with the numbers?"

"Probably not, no." Tamaki had suddenly put on his serious face; scratching his chin thoughtfully- if you hadn't had been in the room ten or so minutes ago, you wouldn't have believed that he could even inhabit the same body that was ranting about the socioeconomic importance of teddy bears.

"Not going to lie, that one was pointed at my brother…"

"And I hate to echo milord; gosh it feels like ages since I called him that, but probably not, no."

"Why?"

"The Spherical Hyperdrive Instant Trace mechanism would probably detect any outside interference, causing the Professional Object Orientated Programming to basically crash my/ any computer."

"Wow, that sounds… fancy…"

"And freaking intense too. At least that's what I assume it is. It has to at least be at that level though; otherwise I would have detected it before…"

"Intelligent and modest too, I see."

"I'm not dicking around, Kaoru. The…" he made gestures in the air with both hands, shadows of words forming but never leaving his mouth. "…uh… the uh… complexity?" He wrinkled his nose at the word, not really getting the right 'feeling' from it. "The… unbreakable, unfindable, the… un…frikingepicness of the virus is off the freaking charts. I haven't just been tumblring… tumbling?... tumblring and…." He gave his brother a shrug, as if to imply that there was something else that could possibly waste any more time than tumblr, "I don't know, what else do people do? Wank? I haven't just been tublring and wanking for 12 months solid, I have actually been trying to sort this shit out, as well as, y'know, providing about seven major companies with my personal technologic abilities."

"A little bit TM of the I, dearest brother, but I think I get you … so this Omega thing is basically an unstoppable machine that's going to suck the Ootori Company dry and probably the whole economy with it. Good-o. Well I don't know about anyone else, but I would love another slice of that delectable Victoria Sponge."

There was another self-reflective silence as each went through varying stages of mental breakdown.

"I feel as though this would be when we would hear the tell-tale spin of motors, followed by a cackle of witch-like laughter—" As Hikaru considered mimicking the laugh that they all knew too well, the door to the room burst wide open, somehow making a 'graceful' slamming noise as it hit the wall.

"I HEAR YOU'RE PLANNING TO MAKE EVIL PLOTS WITHOUT ME!" Her voice was, if possible, more haughty than it had been in their high-school years, but her fashion sense had not changed in the slightest; bustling in in Victorian-era period dress. "I, your ever-faithful manager, have returned… returned as a saviour in your time of need!"

"Speak of the ruddy devil…"

"I was informed you were having a host-club reunion! I can only imagine that I slipped your mind when the invites were sent out!" Renge smiled smugly, squidging down besides Haruhi (all the while glaring daggers at Tamaki.)

"I guess some people never change," Kaoru sighed, smiling slightly. "And it's always the annoying ones."

"I'm sorry Kaoru, what was that? I couldn't quite hear you." Renge gave him the look of: 'I heard you perfectly well, but I'm going to make you squirm and try to think of any excuses you can so that I can beat you into a pulp.'

"…for such a small lady, your looks are damned violent."

"Small? I am anything BUT small!" She glanced habitually at Hunny, before realising that he was a man. It was a common mistake. Then she looked at Haruhi, who also wasn't that small and had a very womanly vibe. "Haven't you ever heard that it's what's on the inside that counts?" she huffed. "And anyway, it's not me we're here to discuss is it?" Her lip twitched small smile as she shrugged slightly, her eyes dropping to the table.

"So… now that we're all assembled, what're we going to do?"

"Well that's obvious isn't it?" Hikaru shrugged, holding his hands out in front of himself, one open-palmed, the other balled into a fist. He connected the two. "Nobody'll miss the bastard."

"Trust you to think that a spot of violence would cure the matter."

"What? It's not like we weren't all thinking it!"

Kyoya snorted. "If only. And by that, I mean, if only I had the confidence to punch a hole in brother's face." He smiled at the concerned looks shot at him. "Hey, I never said I liked my brother, did I."

"N-no, but you told Kaoru…"

Kyoya arched an eyebrow. "I told Kaoru…?"

"Ehm… you told me that I shouldn't talk bad about your brothers?"

"Ohhh, no, you misunderstand. That statement was out of date the day you knocked your noggin'."

Hikaru looked slightly concerned at the statement. "He did what to his what now?"

Kyoya couldn't resist rolling his eyes just slightly. "When he hit his head."

"Right, then why not say that in the first place? Going around confusing everyone with your fancy vocabulary."

"Ooh, ooh, I have an idea!" All eyes turned to Hunny, who was waving his arm in the air.

"If it involves feeding him cake, then I'm going to have to veto the plan, I'm afraid. My brother despises confectionaries of any kind."

"Oh… well it's lucky I have a back-up plan then! We just have to treat whoever _sent _the letter to Yuu-chan with cake!"

The room paused in their 'we're all just about to object you outright' before simultaneously reaching the same conclusion. "Who on earth _is _the secret sender?"

* * *

><p>"Well frankly, I'm just flattered that you would invite me over for such a… an affair." Adrian Green's hand went to loosen his tie slightly as he found himself greeted at the door by nine pairs of evaluating eyes.<p>

"Well I'd heard you were in the country, and since we did say farewell in a rather rushed manner, I thought I should let you greet the group you had such an interest in." Kyoya's smile as he ushered the man in was not unlike a cat's as it begins to toy with a captured mouse.

"How… _kind_ of you." The Englishman's laugh was only slightly afraid as he was sat down at the end of a long dining table, in full view of everyone else.

"So this is the infamous Adrian eh? Definitely quite the looker, I have to say." Hikaru grinned as he saw the awkwardness descend on the man's face. "So. Adrian. Do you mind if I call you Adrian? How does it feel to be in a room where, potentially, anyone could take a fancy to you? Because, let's admit it, all of us here are attracted to the male kind. Even Tamaki's got a thing for the tomboys."

Ever so slightly distressed as to what he'd been invited to, Adrian looked between the twins, then glanced at the faces in the room. "Uhm. Well. Once again, I'm flattered, I guess, that…" He frowned, looking at the twins again. "I thought nobody was able to tell you apart? You're completely different."

Kaoru took up a mock exasperated tone, rolling his eyes over-dramatically. "Teeeeeeell me about it. I swear, for a school of our academic prowess, Ouran really isn't filled with the sharpest knives of the academic drawer… I mean look how long it took them to find out about Haruhi!"

"Maybe we're just taken too seriously," Renge suggested. "I mean, money, power… that's nothing, is it?"

"Definitely not!" Chirped Tamaki, resting his arm around Haruhi's shoulder. "In the face of it, money and power are nothing! They can be beaten!"

"Right… that's very poetic and romantic and all… but… what's this got to do with me?"

"Well you're the example aren't you? You didn't have money, power, status… anything, and yet, here you are, surrounded by some of the greatest of the great." Hikaru had taken back command of the conversation, smiling all the while. "What are your thoughts on money?"

"I… uh… well of course, I would be blatantly lying if I said I hated the stuff… I'm certainly living the high life, what wi-"

"That's great." Hikaru interrupted without hesitation, leaving Adrian looking ever so slightly lost. "So, Adrian eh. That's such a nice name to say. Ehhdoreahnn"

"Ahh well in England, we pronounce it Aydrehan." He tried to smile, obviously getting back into his comfort zone in the topic of Anglo-Japanese accents.

"Interesting, interesting. So, how're your computer skills?"

"I uhm… I guess they're okay? I can do excel, send the occasional e-mail or two…" Again he was frowning. "I'm really sorry, but will someone explain to me what's happening?"

"Have you ever heard of the Omega virus?" Question asked, the room fell silent as planned, all smiles discarded and replaced with deadly stares, all reading the man for any change in expression.

"Th-the… the Omega? That's… an uhm… Ancient Greek letter and symbol right? It's… uhm… used in physics and mathematics…but I don't know about any virus. Is it a new epidemic? A new illness?"

Half the room visibly relaxed whilst the others remained squinting. "He doesn't know." It could either be a question or a statement.

"I can assure you, I haven't the faintest idea what the bloody hell is going on."

"Shut up, British twat." Hikaru made a swatting motion with his hand, not even glimpsing at the man he'd just insulted.

Slightly outraged but holding it in, Adrian looked down at his placemat, thinking. "This' got something to do with the Ootori company, doesn't it." His sly, hungry smile had already returned by the time he'd looked up. "You've got a lead, but you can't follow it, can you. I was your…" he pursed his lips as he scanned the room, linking his evidence with the time, "oh, this was your fourth or five bottle of wine, and it's nearly nine, so I must've been your eleventh, twelfth guess... I feel rather disappointed that I was only number 12 on your list of 'the most suspicious people'."

"What, you think you're more innocent than twelfth?"

"Oh _god _no! I strive to be first in everything I do! I thought that the creeper-stalking would've boosted me higher, to be perfectly honest."

"Well it's exactly that that made you so low, Mr. Green." Kyoya took off his glasses, using his handkerchief to clean the lenses. "You're so fabulously blatant and hungry for attention, it'd be difficult _not _to see you."

"Hey now, I thought you were the intelligent one- weren't you the one who said it was difficult to get Intel on me?"

"Not after we'd met you, good sir. After then, you shone brighter than Rudolf's nose."

"How do you mean?"

"Well, if you were working with the evil brother of doom," Hikaru said matter-of-factly, "you'd've been all up in our faces like 'OH HAI THERE, I'M TOTALLY YOUR FRIEND AND STUFF.'"

Kyoya sighed with a lack of emotion as his palm involuntarily smacked into his face. "Great job, Hikaru. Great. Job."

"What?" One look at the realisation on the British man's face. "Oh. Shit. Uh… woops?"

"So it's your brother, eh? Well this is a real interesting development. Real interesting…"

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** *has very little technical knowledge and made up clever-sounding terms :D*

IT'S BEEN OVER A YEAR SINCE I FIRST STARTED 'REVOLUTION'! I want to thank everyone who's still reading this story after my amazingly rubbish update 'schedule'! I still don't think this story will end for a while, so I look forwards to your continued readership, and thank everyone for being so awesome; I've made great new friends and I can only apologize for replying so slowly.


	39. Flutter

Disclaimer: I do not own Ouran high school host club.

**Chapter 39: Flutter**

* * *

><p>"Whatever you're plotting…" Yoshio's breaths were getting deeper now. The type that would interrupt his sentences, even if they were relatively short. "I want you to drop it."<p>

Kaoru looked into tired but indignant eyes, knowing he wouldn't be able to argue back. But at least he could sate his curiosity. "…why?"

"Because I want to see out my last days…" Breath. "…in a selfish way…" Breath. "…I want to see everything good… …Even if it is tinted… …and distorted… …and fake…" Breath. His blink was longer than usual. "…I want… …to see…" His eyelids fluttered shut, and for one heart aching moment, Kaoru could only watch in growing dread.

He wasn't a doctor; he'd never seen anyone die, is this how it ended? Was this it? His thoughts a whir, it was only the taste of blood that brought him to his senses. He hadn't even noticed how hard he'd been biting the inside of his lip. Calm. Taking a deep, ragged breath, he tentatively reached out, resting a hand on the old man's chest. He could feel it rising and falling softly, and although it probably wasn't the most reliable medical check, it was still proof of the man's existence.

He gulped, but bit his lip until he could smile. "No need to cry, he's still alive. Come on, you know you're not this weak." On the inside, he was in utter turmoil. Could he admit he was almost ecstatic because Yoshio hadn't died besides him? Was it selfish to admit he didn't want to be the one to see the man's last breath leave?

"How's it going?" Kaoru obviously hadn't heard the door open, but now Kyoya stood behind him.

"He's... uhm… resting… I think…" Kaoru closed his eyes and smiled comfortably as Kyoya placed a kiss on his cheek from behind. He felt the heat and, if not physical, then definitely emotional strength seep into him from the arms being wrapped around his shoulders.

"Mmm… seems that way… he's been getting too tired recently. How long was he awake for?"

Kaoru glanced at the clock and was almost pained to see how little time had passed. "A little under a half hour."

"He had a long day… it's perfectly normal for this stage."

"Liar."

"You're too clever for your own good."

"No, you're just crap at hiding things from me."

"That's usually considered a good thing, you know."

"I do know, and I'm happy for it."

"No you don't, I bet you're thinking that, being the omniscient god that I am, I know everything and anything that's happening in the world, and that I wouldn't share it with you."

"Well, at least half of that statement is true…"

"Oi, stop being such a smarmy teen. You know all too well that I tell you too much to begin with."

"Since when was there too much sharing between a married couple, honey dearest?"  
>Kyoya snorted, pushing up his glasses. "You know what I mean."<p>

"Yeah," Kaoru said, sliding his hand from the sleeping man's chest to his hair, which had been slightly ruffled and needed fixing. "I do know… I also know that I don't feel as awkward as I should, doing this."

"Well you are the 'daughter-in-law'; if you weren't comfortable with it, you'd have had to have gotten out of this house pronto."

"My manhood feels thoroughly defiled."

"At least I'm not forcing you to stay in the kitchen."

"Oh ha ha."

"Feel better now?"

"Yeah..." Kaoru took a deep breath, then answered with renewed vigour. "Yeah, I think I am."

"Good, because dinner's ready, and I haven't eaten a proper meal with you for nearly a year."  
>Kaoru snorted slightly, standing slowly so as to not disturb the man in front of him. Stroking his hair one last time, he then turned and gently took Kyoya's hand into his. "To war!"<p>

"I should certainly hope not... though I really doubt why I even bother hoping for a 'peaceful' moment in this household..."

Kaoru nodded in stern agreement. "Too right! We should petition for peace and love!"

Yoshio opened one eye as the two left, smiling slightly at the sight. "…that it wasn't too late for me to change…"

"Why was he on the couch?"

"Eh?"

"Is that habit for him?"

"For who? Hikaru, if you want an answer, you're going to have to be more specific."

"For the brother of evil and doom! I swear only teenage girls at sleepovers sleep on the couch nowadays?"

"...That actually a fair point... I've never seen him crash there before..." Kaoru stroked his chin 'sagely', trying to remember anything that would help the investigation.

"I've never seen him 'crash' anywhere before. In fact, I've never seen him asleep, vulnerable, or otherwise unable to bite someone's head off before. I could bet you... no, I'm telling you with certainty that was his first time lying rough in all his 30-odd years."

"That's barely 'lying rough'," Haruhi said, shaking her head at the raven-haired man. "That's what you say about hobos who live in alleyways or whatever."

"...people LIVE in alleyways?!"

"Okay, ignoring Renge," Hikaru half rolled his eyes as if he'd known his whole life rather than having found out from a youtube advert advertising a donation appeal. "Anyone have any input?"

"He looked exactly like you when you're sleeping, Kyoya... t'was rather adorable."

"...I find that a horrible mixture of disturbing and unbelieveable." There was a general consensus of nodding around the room, all still unable to even imagine Kyoya remotely 'cute'.

"So. Ideas?"

"Maybe even his wife couldn't put up with him."

"I doubt that. She wouldn't even dream of not looking like the perfect wife at every possible moment."

"What if he was a child abuser?"

"Dude, I know his son freaks you out a little but he's my nephew. A little respect?"

"I wasn't dissing him, just his fucked up dad! ...No offense, Kyoya, if you still find that an inaccurate description."

"None taken, the man's a psycho."

"Anyway, all plans were vetoed, remember?"

"Yeah... but... nobody's going to listen to that right?"

"If you want to stare into the dying man's eyes and tell him that, then sure, go ahead brother dear."

"Nope, sorry, I can't accept this. We're going to fucking sort this out, right now."

"What? Wh- Okay Hikaru, how the hell did you fit your whole desktop and tower into ONE bag? And carry it here?"

"Advantages of having the Mori-mon as your..." Hikaru trailed off, his eyes now focused entirely on the mess of wires in front of him, pretending as if he couldn't sort of the tangle in a second flat to avoid finishing his sentence. "Right. So. Omega." A pencil materialised in his mouth, hanging out whilst he chewed on its tip. "I've uhm... I've searched through most of the... the... okay, how to explain for you fools... Look, I can't be arsed. I've looked through most of the company's technology and there's only one place they could have... 'invaded'." He brought up a massive page of complex script, his keyboard clattering under his ferociously fast fingers. Highlighting one line, he turned to face the rest of the room who were now congregating behind him. "A chink in the armour so small, neither my programs nor myself could pick it up."

"How did you not find it before?"

"...do you understand what a gate is? And no, not of the 'outside a house barrier' thinggy majig."

"Uh. Yes. Kinda."

"Well that has nothing to do with it so shut up and sit in the corner."

Rolling his eyes sardonically, Kaoru sat back.

"Look, they're using a code so complex, changing so constantly, it's like solving a jigsaw with no picture."

"Right... so what's it need doing to it?"

"Solving."

"And can you solve it?"

"Solve it? I created it, the bastard."

The room collectively facepalmed, for what must've been the tenth time that meeting. "Why the hell did you not spot your own creation being used?"

"...well I didn't think people would actually use it..."

"Oh for fuck's sake, this is probably the worst time for you to go all humble, Hikaru."

"Oh shut up." He huffed, turning fully back to the computer. "I'm trying to work."

"What can I do to help?"

"Your accent is so unbelievably English."

"...that didn't really... answer my question?"

"Oh it wasn't meant to. I was just saying, it amuses me. Your accent."

"...I guess that's what comes from being English. You get an English accent."

"Ahh, wise words, Mr. Green."

"...I'm starting to feel mildly useless. And like I'm in a jail cell."

"Whatever could you mean?" Haruhi smiled a small, sweet smile, tilting her head slightly to one side. Beside her, Mori and Hunny cracked their knuckles in synch.

"Oh...okay, let's just slow down a little," the man said, jumping to his feet and holding his arms out consolingly.

"Let's not jump the gun, eh, fellas?"

"I don't believe anyone's threatening you, Mr. Green, please, sit down, relax."

"...Nonono, I do not feel comfortable with this, whatever it is. An interrogation? I'm innocent. Really, I am."

"Words said most commonly by suspects, I believe."

"I thought you trusted me? In words of the delightful twin, If I was working with the eldest Ootori son, I'd be 'all up in your faces'?"

"And you didn't know about it? Who the culprit was?"

"Of course I didn't! I l... I really like... what do you lot call them? The married two, do they have a shipping name or something?"

"...Kyoya and Kaoru?"

"...that's no fun! You don't have a nickname for them?"

"You're trying to change the subject."

"And succeeding too, if I might add." He sat back with sudden calmness. "So, little miss lawyer, what proof do you have?"

"..."

"Y'see, I've been waiting for a whole year. A whole YEAR to get into business with those two." He let out a short burst of laughter before suddenly leaning forwards with intensity. "Those two are perfect. Why the HELL would I ruin the most PERFECT chance I had to deal with them? Cancer? Fair fucking enough, but the computer virus? Give me ONE bloody reason why I would do that."

Mori took a step forwards. "Careful," he said in an almost-growl.

"Oh you can get the bloody hell away from me, you useless dog. And you too, mister Hunny-chan. You can't harm me, and you know it. I'll have you both down for assault, no matter how clean your slates are."

Mori's usually stoic face broke momentarily to reveal something that could've been anger, but he didn't move from the spot, lowering his arms a fraction.

"I like you guys. You have no idea how much I respect you all for all of your work. God knows I'd have loved to have been just a couple of years younger, to have spent even a year in school with you lot, partake in your host club activities, at the beach, the pool resort, all of your themed events... but that's not relevant now. What's relevant is that you're accusing me of something so hefty, you can't even comprehend."

"I think we understand how heavy the crimes are, Mr. Green, we've been working on the case non-stop for over 11 months," Haruhi said, tilting her head slightly to include Mori in her comment.

"No, no you don't." He was shaking his head slowly, smiling slightly. "You don't understand a thing. This virus uses the most complex technology know to man, and by man, I mean me, which basically accounts for everyone on earth. And even I don't know where they got the coding for it, it's that secret."

"...Well I don't know about anyone else, but that sounded like a confession to me."

Still shaking his head, almost patronisingly now, he closed his eyes, sitting back into his chair. "I did not have a year of painstakingly hacking computers to be put through this crap."

"Hacking? Which computers?"

"Yours, theirs, everyone's." He ran a hand through his curly blonde hair. "Trust me, it was a lot of effort, trying not to be found by that ginger twat. Lucky he spends most of his time of tumblr, and not running checks on his own laptops."

"...Please don't tell me you just used Hikaru's internet history to find out a whole load of confidential information?"

"...I don't know what to say: do you want the truth?"

"Yes."

"I just used Hikaru's internet history to find out a whole load of confidential information. About both him and the company."

"...that... freaking..." Haruhi's fists clenched into fists, trembling with anger. She was silent for a second before she suddenly relaxed and looked him in the eye. "...is that the reaction you expected?" She asked, smiling at him.

"...Uh..." He pulled various faces before frowning and nodding. "To be frank, yes. Yes it was. I'm utterly confused, what's happening?"

"Did you really think Hikaru would leave his internet history unprotected? In all of his infinite stupidity, internet safety really isn't included."

"..."

"What, you actually expected someone with the mental age of a young teenage male to leave his INTERNET history unprotected. Oh lord, you really are a sheltered child."

"N...no, it's... just..."

"Breadcrumbs," Mori said, with a small smirk-like smile, the word obviously meant as revenge.

"Heh?"

"He was leaving you breadcrumbs. A trail. You lasted quite long to be perfectly honest, he did try his utmost to try and leave you in the dust, but he admired your speed and adaptability."

"So you knew it was me?"

"Oh good god, no. You made your defences incredibly well. But luckily for us, I've become a relatively good actress."

"..."

"Right, so now you've been briefed, you can help 'the ginger twat' solve the code."

"What?"

"We need your help, Mr. Green." Haruhi was quite enjoying putting on her best M voice. "Unfortunately, they're using a corrupted version of Hikaru's code, which needs more than one computer-orientated brain to crack. We thought we'd get our mystery cyber-stalker to reveal himself and then put him to work as Hikaru's lacky thing."

"What? No! I'm not going to do chores for that kid!" He spent a couple of outraged seconds processing what had just been said before his jaw dropped. "HE invented the code?"

"...you're as surprised as he was when he saw it'd been mutated into something new. Now chop chop, work to be done."

"But..."

"No buts."

"I must say, the security in this place is a little..." Adrian lifted an eyebrow slightly, looking around the room he'd been escorted to. It was like what every nerd dreamed of having; the walls covered from floor to ceiling in monitors, powerful computers and bucketloads of the important crap needed to run the a company's worth of technology. But it wasn't so much the mess of wires or the cold blue light being emitted from the screens that he was so interested in, more the fact that Hikaru seemed to be using the Morinozuka as a human sofa. "...tight? Close? Nothing's going to be able to attack you if you keep the guard dog that close, that's for sure."

Hikaru's eyes barely flicked up from the monitors long enough to register the new entree. "Pick a screen, any screen, then get decoding. There are snacks, booze and cokes in the mini fridge to the side, and a toilet in the room next door."

"Wow, ignoring my snide remarks. Now_ that's_ cutting."

"What do you want me to say? 'His bark is worse than his bite?' Because I don't know if you'd noticed, but he doesn't talk much, so his bite is pretty darn painful, now sit down."

"Right. Fine." He looked around for a chair of some sorts before realising that a human sofa was probably the only sort of seating available. "There are no chairs," he said rather deadpan.

"Well done. The floor's good enough for Mori, so it's more than good enough for you."

Adrian glowered at the man, muttering something about the darned Japanese and their lack of adequate seating arranges before settling in for a long week's work.


	40. Family and Closure

**Disclaimer: I do not own Ouran high school host club.**

**Chapter 40: Family and Closure**

**A/N**: notes at the end

**Part 1- Family**

And as the world comes to an end

I'll be here to hold your hand

of Monsters and Men -'King & Lionheart'

Kyoya was falling.

His backside ached from the wooden bench.

The wind ruffled his hair.

The room was stifling.

The breeze was sweet.

Expensive perfume and cologne mingled.

It was refreshing.

The machine whirred.

His father went out of view.

He was falling.

Of course he couldn't find the cure for cancer.

Of course he couldn't save the day.

He couldn't be a fix-all forever.

* * *

><p>"I'VE FUCKING FOUND IT!"<p>

"KANI SAID A RUDE WORD!"

"YOU'VE FOUND IT? THANK THE LORD."

"HIKARU! LANGUAGE!"

"AGE-CHAN, WHAT'RE YOU DOING IN HERE, GO TO SLEEP!"

"WHERE WAS THE BASTARD?"

"GET RID OF IT! KILL IT NOW!"

"FOUND WHAT?"

With around 10 people in one bedroom, after the first jubilant cry, the room erupted into noise, despite the fact that the majority of them had been half-asleep but seconds ago.

Pounding hard into the keyboard, Hikaru suddenly leaned in from the slouched pose he'd adopted in the last months. "HERE YOU GO YOU GODDAMN MOFO. I WILL FUDGING END YOU. AND. AND. AND. DE-LETE!"

"…did you get it?"

"Wait for it… wait… for… it…" There was a hesitant refreshing of a page.

The room waited with baited breath.

"Well?"

"Shhh!"

"yes."

"Yes?"

"YES! I GOT THE MOTHERFUCKER. I GOT THE MOTHERFUCKING THING HOLY- SHIT I DID IT, IT'S GONE IT'S- PRAISE ME. PRAISE YOUR ALMIGHTY GOD."

"IS IT OVER?"

"We've gone and goddamn won this thing."

"CHECK IT AGAIN!"

"NO IT'S DEFINITELY GONE IT'S DEFINITELY-"

Collectively, a tension over the whole room lifted and they couldn't help but let out the most heartfelt whoops and hurrahs.

"It sounds so cliché, but I can actually feel the weight being lifted off of my shoulders." Hikaru was rubbing the offended parts, rolling his arms back and forth to relieve the leftover stress. He all but fell back down into Mori's lap, receiving a well-deserved headpat for his work.

Adrian collapsed backwards into the foetal position, producing what looked like the biggest yawn in recorded history. "pSH, that was basically child's play. What it only took like, 4 months? Pah."

Somebody hit him.

* * *

><p>Kyoya woke up late, excusing himself after all the late nights, early mornings and general insomnia he'd suffered for the last… god knows how long. He deserved a lie in. Yesterday… yesterday the weight of the world had felt like it had been on his shoulders. He knew he'd soon have to face the weight again but for now… for now he decided he could stretch out in bed and become a Kyoya taco of warmth and fluffiness to his heart's content. Unsurprisingly, Kaoru was already up and presumably about, probably at his brother's side- or… maybe not. Hikaru had seemed rather...busy the last he'd seem him and Mori. He let himself chuckle slightly in the pillow. It was nice.<p>

After the relief of the victory, everyone had sort of let themselves be loved. Hugging had been inevitable all round, but there was also a lot of kissing and, well, he for one had the telling ache of sore hips to contend with this morning. Hey, maybe Natsume would get a long-desired sibling in 9 months time. He battled with another smile, wondering what the stupid prince and his princess wife would call their next child. Maybe a baby Fuyu to fit in with the seasons theme.

He let himself just be happy for a couple of minutes, not thinking about anything.

He imagined himself in a whole other world, a lime-green world of perpetual fragmenting light, of the air smelling like freshly cut grass, of earth after rain, of softness and… he sighed and for once he felt his stress dissipate with the breath. He imagined a world where he could be himself.

He slowly sobered up from his excitedness as the covers stopped feeling quite so comforting and a bit more… sticky. He laughed slightly as he took himself to the bathroom, allowing himself a rather luxurious bubblebath. He soaked every inch of himself to the bone, allowing the heat to mend the aches from last night and every rough night before. He found himself drifting off again so, to prevent himself from unwittingly drowning in the bathtub, he reluctantly drained it and rubbed himself down.

Warmed through and smelling like lavender and rose oil, his next task was to do the same to the bedding. He stripped the bed of its covers and chucked them into the laundry basket, remaking the bed with one of the many fresh replacements in the airing cupboard next to the wardrobe. Early on in their relationship they had decided that:

a) they would make their own bed to spare the poor maids and

b) they would have a private airing cupboard since neither of them particularly enjoyed sleeping in the aftermath and didn't particularly enjoy the walk of shame down the hall.

He made the bed and immediately after decided to coronate it with a quick nap. He'd already changed into a shirt and some freshly pressed trousers and Kaoru would kill him for it but- to hell with it, he was determined that today would be a good day.

It didn't take long for him to drift off.

He was awoken less than an hour later when someone's hand stroking his fringe from his forehead brought him up from the dreamworld. Feeling adequately rested, he decided not to slay the offender, but didn't feel like getting up quite yet.

"Mornin'", he managed to mumble. When there was no reply but the removal of said hand, Kyoya opened his eyes. He was greeted by the redhead he hoped it was, but not with a look he particularly enjoyed. "...W-"

He wasn't psychic, as the host club had enjoyed speculating he was but… he was observant. He was intelligent he was-

"dead-"

Kaoru nodded, his eyes fluttering shut and his lip drained of colour by a tight bite.

"-" the lack of a reply scared him the most, Kaoru decided. When _Kyoya_ was lost for words, you knew it was bad.

Kaoru was determined not to cry. He'd watched as his Kyoya had awoken and had laughed to himself and he couldn't- he didn't want to ruin that. So he'd waited. He'd watched his most beloved man make himself a goddamn bubblebath, had watched him hum as he made their bed, wincing every once in a while when his body reminded him of the strain and- he'd left the room then to one of the obscure spare rooms nobody had used in years. He still didn't cry. He wouldn't. He was going to be the strong one. For once in his goddamn life he was going to be the pillar. So he just waited and calmed himself. He was going to be strong.

He climbed into the bed and resumed stroking as Kyoya smashed into the ground, shattering, shattering- and Kyoya cried. Pure, child-like crying. Crying for a parent, crying because he was lost in a massive world, crying because he'd lost his dad. He hid his eyes with one arm as he cried, using his sleeve to soak the tears, the snot, not caring about, well, anything. He just cried, and Kaoru let him. They said nothing. They demanded nothing. He just waited and stroked. He stroked until his hand tired so he started to pat instead, patted a regular rhythm, patted a heartbeat, patted until the sobbing stopped.

"Mmm?" he uttered, lightly pulling at Kyoya's sleeve, damp but still pressed to his face.

Kyoya let his arm be taken away, occasionally taken over by shaky intakes of breath.

Kaoru smiled at him, a slight smile, a warming one. He took out his handkerchief and started wiping his eyes, his nose, slowly, gently, more for the touch than for the action. He repeated the job as new tracks formed until they eventually dried.

He dropped the tissues for later removal and restarted the stroking. "Mm?"

Kyoya nodded. He shifted closer and closed his eyes, breathing slower, calmer.

"Y'know," Kaoru started, barely audible. "Whoever said tears were sexy was totally right."

Kyoya snorted a small laugh, his lips trembling in the direction of a smile. "I'm-"

"Shh," Kaoru hushed. "don't you dare be telling me you're sorry or I swear I'll make it a family reunion up in the heavens."

Kyoya grimaced but chuckled slightly. "Gallows humour? Really?"

"Best way to heal a broken heart."

"That's like saying the way to cure a zit is to poke it."

"...that's a surprisingly good analogy. Huh."

Kyoya was overcome with a fit of shallow giggles, muttering something about how he'd just compared death to a zit and about the morbidity and- Kaoru just smiled and continued stroking his hair. The giggle turned into a half-laugh, half-sob and was possibly the most heart-wrenching thing Kaoru had ever borne witness.

"Shhhh, at this rate, you'll wake the dead with your noise," he said into the raven feather hair.

This just worsened the man's reaction, his laugh part wail.

For a normal setting the volume of it would barely have carried out of the room but in the reverberating silence of the house-

It wasn't long until someone burst into the room, the air chilling palpably.

"Have you no respect," the voice scathed darkly. Kyoya silenced immediately. "Hmm!? You think this is a laughing matter?!"

Kaoru reacted first, jumping from the bed and rushing to his sister-in-law whilst making soothing hand-gestures. "I'm so sorry, it was my fault, I shouldn't have-"

The woman in head-to-toe black very visibly shrunk from his touch and refused to acknowledge his presence. "Kyoya. When I'm talking to you, I demand you at least show some respect and look at me!"

Kaoru redoubled his efforts with growing unease and impatience for the woman. "Hey, could you please keep your voice down, he's still grieving for god's sake. Just cut him some slack."

She turned to him then, looking like a viper who's just witnessed a maggot stand up for itself. "Oh, Kaoru. I am so sorry if I offended you, but some people consider raucous laughter_ inappropriate_ for a mourning period."

Kyoya sat up, wiping his eyes and putting on his glasses. He pulled the covers around him unconsciously, his mind desiring the comfort. "My deepest apologies, sister. Kaoru was merely trying to raise my spirits. It's been a hard year for us."

He must've channeled enough of his eldest brother's attitude for her to huff as she took a step back, rolling her eyes slightly. "Yes well see to it you are dressed and appropriate within the hour. You are needed for the preparation."

Kyoya nodded, prompting her to shuffle out, shooting one last haughty glance in Kaoru's direction.

Kaoru deflated his puffed out chest, a reaction to make himself more intimidating than he knew he was. "Oh god I'm so sorry, Kyo, I didn't- now she thinks-"

"It's fine, Kaoru, don't worry. She's just jealous."

"PFT. Her? Jealous? And pigs can fly. What's she got to be so jealous about, hm?"

"Her Ootori husband isn't as adorable as I am, obviously." He grinned lopsidedly, rubbing his now glasses-less eyes. They stung.

"Oh obviously. Her hatred has nothing at all to do with her long-running bigotry or ill ease at her husband having a and I quote, 'faggot brother'."

"Nope. Not at all."

"Well that's good then." Kaoru smiled as he returned to the bed but, seeing Kyoya's uneasiness, he stopped himself from sitting down on it again. Instead he crossed to Kyoya's side and took his hand. "He was a good man who'll be sorely missed."

Kyoya nodded solemnly.

"And Kyo?"

He nodded again, looking up.

"It wasn't your fault."

Kyoya's tears returned.

* * *

><p>There was a wake and two funerals. This had been Yuuichi's idea.<p>

The wake and first funeral had been small and personal; Japanese-style, they had been housed in a local temple. Mantras were chanted, kimonos were worn. However, instead of then going to the crematorium as per standard, they then hosted a much larger, much more corporate funeral, in which hundreds of businessmen and women piled into a large gothic church-come-crematorium where hymns were sung and suits filled the pews.

Yuuichi's speech had been the least emotional experience many of the 'audience' had ever witnessed.

Strangely, Kyoya was not among this crowd of thought.

Knowing his brother perhaps the most in the church, maybe bar his sister and Yuuichi's wife, the speech was amazingly out of character. It was nearly human. It had been the first time he had heard his brother talk of his father about anything other than work. About his early childhood memories, about growing up with his family and- relating these with the occasional joke. Yuuichi was trying to make them laugh.

He'd sworn he wouldn't cry but he couldn't help it. It was physically stunning. He was actually glad, for the first time in his life, that he had such a strong brother. Being the most successful- being the eldest son. It was incredibly selfish of him but just this once he was glad that he would never have to do the 'honours' of arranging the funeral, of having to give the speech, of being the port of call for sympathy and condolences and for, well, picking up the pieces and gluing them back together.

Yuuichi was actually… an incredibly strong glue.

Kaoru seemed to have picked up on this miracle of character development too, and he was worried. A thousand thousand questions battled for first place in his mind but he pushed them down. This was not the time. He strengthened his grip on Kyoya's hand.

At the end of the ceremony, the coffin was rolled to the annex where the crematorium was lodged and Kyoya's heart dropped. It was suddenly way too real. He felt like he was falling a thousand times over, butterflies in the pit of his stomach churning and ripping his internal organs to shreds. But his brother's speech had made him come to a realisation.

He had initially been angry. Incomprehensibly angry. No matter what Kaoru had said, it had been his fault. He was a failure. He couldn't even find a cure for one of the most prevalent diseases in the human world he couldn't help his father he couldn't do anything. He hadn't slept to prevent the dreams he knew would come, he'd barely eaten for fear of it rising back up very soon after swallowing. It had been his fault.

But now- He had a family. He actually had a family.

When he was a teenager his family grew innumerably within months, from zero to impossible to count and all because of one stupid, blond frenchman. It had only taken him over a decade to realise that… His family wasn't as limited to begin with as he had thought. He had two brothers and a sister who, besides all better judgement might actually care for him. He had had better-than-some, encouraging (in their own way) parents. He loved his host-club family beyond words but his Ootori family… he now realised he could actually think to love them without having to back out of the words.

Of course he couldn't cure cancer. Of course he couldn't save the day. He couldn't be a fix-all forever, and no-one expected him to. He went from falling to flying within moments, his stomach unclenching to dispel the butterflies.

...He was accepted.

**Part 2- Closure**

"...Yuuichi's wife."

"Yeah."

"...and you think it was-"

Kaoru nodded.

Kyoya frowned.

"Nobody will believe us."

"They'll think it's a personal vendetta against her because of her intolerance of us, yes."

"But you still think-"

"Yes."

"...Well shit."

Kaoru nodded again. "Shit indeed."

"The manipulative-"

"I'm not 100% sure, so don't- uh, outright accuse her, yo."

"You're not 100%?!"

"Well I'm like 98% sure, but-"

"But that's only 98%." Kyoya was used to working on figures much closer to the 100% mark.

"What's with all the loveydovey mumbling, hmm?" Hikaru returned from the kitchen with four precariously balanced mugs of coffee in one hand and a plate of cakes in the other.

"We own trays, Hikaru."

"We do?" Hikaru was actually surprised by this.

Mori watched him with poorly disguised laughter in one of the sofas, refusing to help him as he would do with probably anyone else. "Several in fact."

"Psh, trays are for losers anyway." Hikaru managed to make the coffee to the table without any burns or disasters and grinned. "See. Perfectly fine without-"

He was pulled onto the sofa by Mori, and made to shut up with a hand clamped firmly around his mouth. He nodded at Kaoru who rolled his eyes with a silent 'now look who's being loveydovey' and reiterated what he'd just said.

"I think it was Yuuichi's wife, the one who started the virus."

"Mmmbmmbmb-" He tapped the and on his mouth and Mori allowed his prisoner to speak. "Wait, what? But wasn't-"

"Yuuichi himself a prime suspect? Yes. But… we've crossed him off."

"Crossed him off?! But what about the letter! The shifty actions! The… attitude!"

"We think that was her."

"Right. ...and your evidence?"

"None."

"Right. Well. Have fun in prison guys, it was nice knowing you."

"Could you not, like-"

"Just find some evidence in the computer? Uh, no. What do you think I've been trying to do for the last however long?"

"Why is this so damned complicated."

"We could just ask her?"

"...oh yeah sure just 'Hi Mrs. Ootori, I noticed you didn't like us very much. Is that because you're trying to liquefy the company? Also, whilst we're on this topic, what exactly was the purpose of you doing this? If you could speak directly into the mic please.'"

Kaoru sighed into his coffee, inhaling the steam wafting off it. "I suppose we'll just have to settle with Yuuichi..."

"T-talking? To- to the devil incarnate? But- but-" Hikaru seemed to be the only startled on in the room, which only furthered his discomfort. "...what, you guys like him now?"

"Not exactly like, but… appreciate," Kaoru said with a sip.

"Appreciate?!" Hikaru scoffed.

"...I've recently rekindled a faith in family," Kyoya muttered in a tone that relayed that he could scarcely believe it himself. "I'll soon find out whether this is just was another failure in a long line of recent losses."

"Right… okay, so, who's being sacrificed for this noble deed? And before anyone can even think of mentioning it, shotgun not me."

Kaoru smiled, raising one hand. "I've volunteered."

"YOU?" Hikaru cried. "That's nearly as bad as me! It's like sending a caterpillar to fight a dragon!"

"Your faith is astounding, brother."

"But it's Yuuichi we're talking about here. I'm pretty sure he eats people alive."

"Don't be ridiculous. He's just a bit-"

"If you say misunderstood I swear to god i'll punch you."

Kaoru grinned as he finished his coffee.

"Well okay, if you're so hellbent on marching to your death, when's your execution scheduled?"

"In about 30 minutes?"

"30- YOU'RE DOING IT NOW?"

"No time like the present, is there Hikaru." He stretched as he stood, Kyoya following him up. "See you on the other side."

"Woahwoahwoah wait wait wait are you freaking kidding me? This is not advisable, Kao. Like, at all."

"...I know," Kaoru winked. "But we've gotta try something, right?"

"Well, well...maybe your adorable charms will help win him over." Hikaru huffed, knowing his defeat.

"We can but hope."

* * *

><p>Kaoru froze as he stood in front of the fated door, one arm raised and ready to knock. He was suddenly very very aware of what he was about to do and it set his heart a-pounding. His arm gravitated from the door to the scar on his head, which he rubbed thoughtfully. <em>Oh god i'm pathetic I can't even- just knock on the door, Kaoru, just knock alright i'm going to i'm going to- no but what if i'm interrupting something important like a phone call or a- no, nonono, I just need to knock I just need to- AGH you're such a fucking coward Kaoru-<em> his thoughts were knocked clean off of his shoulders as the door in front of him swung open.

"Oh."

"H-hi."

"You are late."

"Oh shit, I mean, oh, I'm really sorry I was-"

"Nevermind." Yuuichi opened the door wider, welcoming him in. Perhaps 'welcoming' was too strong a word. More like… dragging. With his aura. It was strange in that it both managed to freeze and compel Kaoru towards his goal. Once they were both sat, Yuuichi raised a questioning eyebrow. "So?" it seemed to be asking.

"AH. Uh. Uhh, okay, this may sound really strange but, uhm, and don't take this the wrong way it was just we noticed that maybe perhaps you might happen to-"

"Cut to the chase, Kaoru. I am busy."

"Oh, yeah, okay, sure. Uhm." _Steel yourself._ "You know the virus?"

"I am aware of it. Give my thanks to your brother for the timely disposal of it."

Kaoru nodded. "Uh, well, we were looking into who caused it and, well,"

"You think it was me." Yuuichi sat back in his chair, steepling his fingers. His glasses glared like there was no tomorrow. He didn't sound surprised.

"Well actually no. I mean, initially, we did, because of the letter and-"

"But now?"

"Now we think it might be… uh, someone related to you."

"Related? How so." He leant forwards again, his aura starting to spike slightly.

"Oh I don't know, maybe a uh, significant other, or a uh, work partner, or perhaps a significant other, I mean, y'know, completely hypothetically of course."

"You suspect… my wife?"

"Suspect is a harsh word..."

Yuuichi combed a hand through his hair, swivelling his chair so as to stare out of the floor to ceiling window view. "What motive do you imply she has?"

"Uh, well, that part we haven't quite-"

"And evidence?"

"Oh uh, well… uhm."

"So you're just fishing then."

"...Well, uh, Sir, I mean-"

"Please, Kaoru, Sir is too much."

Kaoru gulped. This was perhaps the most uncomfortable situations he'd ever been in. "...Yuuichi-sama?"

"Yuuichi is fine."

Kaoru clenched the arm rests of the chair, feeling like he'd just stepped into a bear-trap. His mind went blank so it went into autopilot. "Haha soon we'll be calling each other Kao-tan and Yuu-kun. Hah.. ha…" _Shitshitshitsthitwhaatthefuckkareyoutalkingaboutshit._

Yuuichi frowned. It was obvious that his previous impressions of the boy were returning. Perhaps he'd been impressed by Kaoru's courageous summoning. But now that thought was completely over-run by… Yuu-kun. What the hell.

"We'll stick with Yuuichi for now."

Kaoru nodded enthusiastically, regretting everything he'd ever done in his whole life.

"'The boy was definitely an anomaly in my plans.'"

"Excuse me?" Kaoru said, shifting on his chair slightly.

"What was he planning, the scheming fag. It was atrocious. Kyoya was despicable enough; thinking that he could get away with acting like he ran the goddamn place, but then to marry in some half-bit family? The Hitachiins were hardly an Ootori level family."

Kaoru's heart stopped. "Wh-"

Yuuichi gave him a 'shut up and keep listening' look that intensified with Kaoru's struggling. "Perhaps, perhaps, it would've been slightly more… tasteful… had the Hitachiin been female, but a gay marriage? Unacceptable. And this was why the Ootori family was being dragged down. Its standards were sub-par because it allowed such scum to enter into it. To defile it."

Kaoru coloured with anger. The subtle dislike he could put up with but this, this outright affront to him, this was unacceptable.

"The announcement that Father had cancer had been a delightful addition to my plans. It served the old bastard right, really. It was karma. He was obviously not fit for the job anymore. But why let his unacceptable ways be left unpunished? No, Yoshio would have to die without a penny to his name, be disgraced and shamed beyond the grave before any thoughts of justice would be sated."

And just like that, Kaoru's face blanched again. He felt his whole body slump back down into the chair.

"You see," Yuuichi said, "I have all the evidence you need." Kaoru couldn't reply, and Yuuichi didn't want him to. "However those words were not my own."

"Wha-" Kaoru's head was swimming. He couldn't stomach this emotional roller-coaster at all.

"You would not understand, you see, what with your relationship and your… background. Or perhaps you would. As I understand, you mother is a very forthright person. She demands to be seen and to be heard."

Kaoru nodded, scared as to why his mother had been brought up.

"And your father?"

It seemed to be an open question. "He… stays in the shadows."

"He stays in the shadows. That is right. And yet, would you say he was powerless?"

Kaoru considered this. He shook his head. His father barely uttered a word but he still dealt with two Hitachiin twins, a Hitachiin wife and now a Hitachiin daughter. "Not at all." If anyone was to be considered powerful, it would be him.

Yuuichi nodded. "Do you know my wife's name?"

Kaoru started to reply, but stopped short._ Wait. Wait, no no no, this couldn't- he- he was a businessman, he was an employer, he was a host but-_ "...Sachiko? No… Makiko? ...wait, wait no, no- Shiina. No, shit, wait-"

"I don't blame you, Kaoru." Yuuichi stood, collected a framed photo from a nearby coffee table and presented it to the younger man. "She's practically invisible. This is a family portrait taken the other month. Who is in the photo, Kaoru?"

"...you and… your son?"

"Ah ah ah…" Yuuichi extended a long, skeletal finger and stroked a shadow-like figure in the photograph. "My wife, Youko."

"You...ko… of course, Youko, how could I have-"

"She commands country-sized armies of people and yet people can never realise that she's there. And you know why?"

"True evil lurks in the shadows?"

Yuuichi nearly smiled, his lip stretching thinly. "Very close. Nobody can catch you if they don't know you exist."

"...but, what? No there's a thing called the police, I'm pretty sure like DNA testing and whatever-"

Yuuichi raised a sardonic eyebrow, indicating that he should be quiet. "And so I was surprised that, well, you of all people, the one person my wife openly despises, could even think of suspecting her. Thinking back on that statement I don't suppose I should be, hmm… she really did trip up, didn't she."

"...does this mean-"

"That i'm sacrificing her to the wolves? Well now, that really does all depend."

Yuuichi was standing behind Kaoru now, his aura seeping out like ooze from a ghibli monster. "..on?" Kaoru could barely manage to squeak.

"On whether or not you make this worth my while. You see- my wife didn't do this in order to become famous, or because she is particularly evil, she, well, like most people, wanted to see me succeed. And to think, my Father decided to put you and your darling husband above me in his Will."

Kaoru suddenly twisted to look up at the daunting figure.

"That's right! You really did worm your way into his affections, didn't you. Keeping a bedside vigil, hosting tea-parties for distinguished guests- honestly you're such a perfect housewife."

_Oh god, this was starting to sound a little bit 'i'll give you evidence for sexual pleasures-y'..._ "Uh, so, what was it that you wanted-"

"My wife for my company."

"What?"

"I'll give you my wife and sufficient evidence of her crimes if you hand over your and my darling brother's newfound ownership of the company."

"Wait, so, you'd sacrifice the one person who actually… cared for you in order to, what, take over a company? Continue being rich?"

"Cared? For me? Don't get me wrong, I loved my wife but she went about it all the wrong ways. I commended her subtlety, her anonymity, but… to ruin my father? No, no no all wrong, all wrong. My father was not the person she should have been attacking and for that I want to see her punished just as much as you do." He ruffled Kaoru's hair. "Oh don't give me that look, this world is dog eat dog and I am afraid I am a healthy cannibal. You cannot survive with that lax outlook you have."

Kaoru smiled as strongly as he could. "Well maybe you won't be thinking that way in a couple of days."

Yuuichi circled around him, eerily shark-like. "Hm, now you see, this is what ruins you, Kaoru. You were doing an almost perfect job but it's lines like that that really-" he dropped to a crouch in front of him, leaning in with the look of a scorpion. "prove disaster." He reached into Kaoru's pocket and held up his findings.

Kaoru grimaced. _Ah. Shit._

"A microphone. Really? What are you, a TV detective? No I think not." He removed the SD card and returned the machine. "Oh, and if you would please empty the rest of them out onto my desk? I really wouldn't like to have to pat you down."

Kaoru sighed and removed the three hidden microphones from about his person. This had been a shit idea, and if he was punished, Hikaru was going to be in for a world of pain.

"What you don't understand is, Kaoru, that this isn't one of your fairtytales, or one of those hilarious plays you used to put on." Yuuichi smiled knowingly at him. He smiled. He Smiled. "This is a corporate world and I'm afraid this is how it works. There is no fix-all, no deus-ex-machina, no prince to come and save the day."

Kaoru didn't know what to expect.

And nothing happened.

This was-

Had they won?

...They hadn't lost anything, right?

They didn't want to take the Ootori business, they had damning evidence of the culprit, this was… a win. And overwhelming win.

He returned to Hikaru's house, unsure whether to smile or to frown.

The door opened before he could even ring the doorbell, ten faces all screaming "and?" "so?" "how'd it go?" He handed one of them a medium-sized paper folder, relinquishing it with a smile. "It's done."

There was an earful of jubilant cries, everyone battling to have just a glance at the folder's innards. Kaoru was encompassed in a strong hug, his raven-haired prince nearly lifting him off of the floor. "You did it you marvelous man, you did it."

Kaoru clung back, breathing him in. "...It doesn't feel like it."

It took a while for the group to settle down, but once they had, the air shifted. A solemn atmosphere settled around them as Kaoru recounted his adventure.

"So… what now?"

"We take her in?"

"What, and let Yuuichi take over?"

"We have to, I signed a contract."

"You signed a- god, Kaoru, I know you're not a lawyer but still, do you still own no common sense?" Haruhi gripped the folder, exasperated at the conditions in which were stated. "You don't just sign a contract without a lawyer!"

"I'm not stupid, Haru. I just- he said this was a once in a lifetime deal. He said he knew we were going to relinquish our rights anyway so he'd be able to take over any time he wanted but the information he was offering would be disposed of as soon as I left the room."

"Bloody- That's blackmail. We can get him for duress."

"Duress?"

"Duress is a wrongful act or threat by one party that compels another party to perform some act, such as the signing of a contract, which he or she would not have done voluntarily. As a result, there is no true meeting of minds of the parties and, therefore, there is no legally enforceable contract," she related with text-book precision. "In most cases involving duress, the contract is voidable, and the person who was subjected to the duress may ask the court to declare the contract unenforceable."

"But this was a transaction of information," Mori input. "Will the court accept a claim of duress when our client received the information he wanted?"

"Well we'll- we'll get a judge who we know."

"Haruhi, you're starting to sound like the villain, here."

"I'm not! I'm just saying it wouldn't hurt having a little bit of extra help-" She stopped when Kyoya stood up.

"I think we should let him."

"What?!"

"No offence to you, Haruhi, or you, Mori, but… my brother has an army of veteran lawyers. Even two massively respected as yourselves would be ants under his boot."

Mori nodded. He'd faced a few of these opponents before and… it was not a battle worth facing.

Haruhi refused to give up. "But- but we have you! We have each other, we have-"

"We have hope, Haruhi, yes, but… what harm will come of letting my brother just… have the company? Nobody wanted to contend anyway. My other brother is quite content where he is and I for one want nothing to do with it."

"But then we're just letting his poor wife be that man's scapegoat-"

"Then we free her. We detain her with no fuss, no publicity, we file for divorce and off they go in their separate directions."

"Is that even… legal?"

"I'm sorry, who was the one willing to bribe the judge three minutes ago?"

Kaoru sighed. "I'm also in favour of this."

"Oh come on!" Haruhi cried. "Since when were you two so defeatist? We'll find a way, we'll-" she gave a strong look at Tamaki, who'd been silent the whole conversation. His gaze had never left the floor as his foot drummed against the carpet and his chin rested on the palm of one hand. His fingers tapped upon his lip.

"Kyoya," Tamaki started, slowly lifting his gaze to the man in question.

"Hmm?"

"Sell me your company."

There was a silence.

"You're kidding me," Hikaru said into the void. "You? Owning the Ootoris? I can't-"

Mori detained his red-head, pulling him out of the conversation with a shh-ing noise.

"I can't just- my brother-" Kyoya stammered, not knowing what to say.

"He can be branch head. We can be the Suoh-Ootori company."

"No fair! I wanna join in!" Hunny said, bouncing in his chair. "If you guys getta have a merger I wanna have a merger!" Nekozawa nodded next to him.

Mori's eyes widened as he stared at Hunny and his spouse. As his lawyer this was-

"Preposterous, we can't just- merge the largest companies in Japan just- because!"

"All in favour say aye-"

Hunny, Tamaki, Nekozawa raised their hands with quick ayes. Slowly Mori's, Hikaru's and Haruhi's followed. There was a bang as Renge and Adrian crashed through the door they'd obviously just been listening through, raising their hands wildly.

"AYE, AYE AYE AYE! PLEASE."

"PLEASE INCLUDE ME I THINK IT'S A MARVELOUS IDEA. PLEASE. AYE."

"We.. we can't just-" Kyoya said weakly, under the gaze of so many eyes.

He slowly turned as Kaoru started to raise his hand. "Aye, I think."

Kyoya turned to face every determined eye in the group.

This was sacrificing the names of every big family in the country, and abroad. This was sacrificing individuality, a name at the top of the list, they'd all be working under someone else, never reaching the top, never achieving the grand place, never- "You… all of you… would do this?"

They nodded, then looking to Tamaki. "We follow you unto the end, it seems."

Tamaki nodded, shaking slightly. He bit his lip to stop himself from crying.

"...Well then men and women, I suppose it's time to start talking about our latest venture."

Those standing sat down, forming a ring.

"...uhm, item one on the list is, I guess… picking a name? Unless we go for the Suoh-Ootori-Haninozuka-Nekozawa-Houshakuji-Green inc.?"

Someone laughed, but no-one had really gotten over what they were about to start, and their minds weren't really-

Renge stood and laughed. "Well? Isn't it obvious?"

"We're not going to call the most influential company in the world the Host Club, Renge."

* * *

><p><strong>==OURAN INCORPORATED TAKES BUSINESS WORLD BY STORM WITH REVOLUTIONARY MERGER==<strong>

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** Hooooooooly shit, surprise guys.

So I last updated on the 19th November 2012. Yes that's right, 2012. Hm. Yeah, I never was good at updating on time.

The reason I stopped was, well, because I realised that the fic was a coping mechanism for me and it just wasn't working. It- well, they always say 'write what you know', don't they and I needed somewhere to just splurge my feelings when my grandfather battled with, guess what, cancer. The majority of the scenes (minus the gay and the tecnovirus and- okay, some of the scenes) I used were based on things that were happening with me at the time. And then my grandpa died and the fic kind of went out of control. I lost all sense of plot and consistency because I was just writing for the sake of writing. I stopped to give myself a break and then, uh, yeah. 15 months passed.

I was honestly never going to finish the story, not knowing how my story would end. However I've recently been getting reviews again? Which was.. uh…. strange, and I was eventually guilt-tripped by my own consciousness into writing this, the final chapter of Revolution.

It has been a magnificent ride with you all. This was my first and longest fic, surpassing 80,000 words and I can't believe it happened. My spelling was appalling, my grammar non-existent and now- well, it's not all that much better but thank god for autocorrect.

If any of you guys care, I passed my A-levels with flying colours last summer and I actually got into uni (Royal Holloway, University of London), studying English and Classics, which I never could have done without the encouragement of some of you beautiful people.

**If anyone wants to talk to me still, I do still check ff regularly, however my main haunting grounds are tumblr (ninjaninaiii) and I do have skype if you want to chat. (if so send me a pm sometime yo :))**

_**Anyway. Thank you so much for reading thus far and I hope you've enjoyed the marvel that is and forever will be a Revolution.**_


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